A three-day celebration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Rivera Jewish colony, originally called the Baron Hirsch colony, in the southern part of Buenos Aires Province, concluded here last night at a ceremony attended by thousands of Jewish settlers and distinguished guests including the Governor of the Province. Major Carlos Aloe, and Dr. Arieh Kubovi, Israel Ambassador to Argentina.
The occasion was marked with a parade by Jewish settlers from all parts of the country, many driving agricultural machines and many more on horseback and wearing gaucho costume. Also present were representatives of all the major Jewish institutions in Argentina and officials of the province and of the municipality of Rivera. A police band played the Argentine and Israel national anthems alternately. Afterwards, a huge feast was held outdoors in a park.
Before the celebration began, a monument to the 6,000,000 Jews martyred by the Nazis was dedicated in the Rivera Jewish cemetery. This took place Friday. The following day, the main street of the town was renamed in honor of Theodor Herzl and a plaque commemorating the event was erected at the head of the street.
At the festivities yesterday, Maj. Aloe conveyed the greetings of President Peron to the Jewish settlers and recalled how 50 years ago 26 Jewish families had founded the colony which today was a prosperous town. The Governor stressed that to “President Peron men count, not for race or religion, but for goodwill.”
Dr. Kubovi paid tribute to the greatness of the Argentine people who had accepted the handful of Jewish settlers in their midst and made possible such developments as Rivera. He singled out for particular tribute the late Eva Peron, noting that she had written that “injustice must come to an end.” This sentiment had found an “echo in our hearts, Dr. Kubovi declared. He underlined the parallel development of Argentina and Israel and stressed that Argentina had offered a “haven to our refugees,” giving them the means to live in dignity and freedom.
Other speakers at the festivities included; Israel Novick, acting president of the DAIA; Mark Turkow, of the World Jewish Congress; Ambassador Ezequiel Zabotinsky; Dr. Simon Trachtenberg, of the Organization Israelita Argentina; Deputy Governor Dr. Carlos Diaz, and Rivera Mayor Francisco Alonso. The celebration was given wide prominence in both the Jewish and Argentine press which played up the development of Rivera as a pioneering exploit of the first order and a symbol of brotherly cooperation.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
