The establishment of a $250,000 chair in the name of the Argentine Republic at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem with the object of strengthening cultural relations between the Argentine and Israel was announced at a press conference hold here today at the headquarters of the American Friends of the Hebrew University.
The announcement was made by Dr. Salvador Kibrick and Alfredo Korn, president and secretary, respectively, of the foundation for the establishment of the chair, who are on their way from Buenos Aires to Jerusalem. Though the Foundation is a private venture sponsored by Argentine Jews, Dr. Kibrick emphasized that this is the first time that a chair will be established at a university in the name of any country or nation.
The faculty for which the chair will be established will probably be philosophy, but the final decision will be made by the Rector of the University, Prof. Simcha Assaf, who has recently been appointed an Associate Justice of the Israeli Supreme Court.
Efforts to raise the funds for the chair began almost ten years ago and were interrupted by the war. The sum of $250,000 raised by contributions of Argentine Jews will go toward the construction of a new building on Mt. Scopus where the Argentine Republic Chair will be set up. Another $250,000 for the maintenance of the chair has already been raised or pledged by Jews in Argentina, Dr. Kibrick stated. The purpose of the Foundation is the exchange of professors and students between Argentina and Israel and the expression of a tribute by the Jews of Argentina to the Argentine Republic.
Dr. Kibrick emphasized that “the small clique of Nazis has disappeared under President Peron and that no traces of anti-Semitism are left in the Argentine.” Relations between Argentina and Israel are good, Dr. Kibrick said. Asked when President forum will recognize Israel, Dr. Kibrick expressed his belief that this would follow promptly upon Israel’s de jure recognition by the United States.
It was also announced at the same meeting that the Association of Jewish Biochemists in Buenos Aires has contributed $125,000 toward the establishment of a Phyto-Chemistry Institute (Chemistry of Plants and Plant Products) in Israel and that the Association has pledged an annual contribution of $25,000 toward its maintenance.
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.
