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DE RUEHBU #0121/01 0361138
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 051138Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 2973
INFO RUCNMER/MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS PRIORITY 1930
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM PRIORITY 0017

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 000121 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DRL/SEAS FOR KAREN PAIKIN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PHUM ASEC PTER AR
SUBJECT: ARGENTINA: GOA CONDEMNS ANTI-ISRAEL 
DEMONSTRATIONS, REBUKES HEAD OF ANTI-DISCRIMINATION AGENCY 
 
REF: BUENOS AIRES 0095 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  The Argentine Jewish community continues 
to express concerns over the lack of official condemnation of 
recent anti-Israel protests featuring anti-Semitic imagery 
(reftel) led by pro-Kirchner "piquetero" social activist 
leader Luis D'Elia.  In response to these concerns, the GOA 
has stepped up its efforts to denounce the demonstrations. 
The head of the GOA's anti-discrimination agency (INADI) 
Maria Jose Lubertino has come under harsh criticism from the 
Jewish community for defending the protests on the basis of 
free speech, saying Israel's military operations in Gaza 
"violated international law, and that turned (public opinion) 
against them."  Cabinet Chief Sergio Massa also publicly 
reprimanded Lubertino, describing her statement as 
"infelicitous" and "poorly phrased."  He said she should have 
rejected "any kind of discrimination and anti-Semitism." 
 
¶2. (SBU) INADI subsequently launched a probe into the 
demonstrations and lodged a criminal complaint over the 
discriminatory graffiti and banners used during the protests, 
and Lubertino also met with Jewish leaders.  Meanwhile, 
Argentine Ambassador to the United States Hector Timerman 
acknowledged during a radio interview the right to free 
speech, but stated unequivocally that "using a swastika or 
the Star of David is... harassment of the Argentine Jewish 
community."  While the political leadership of Argentina's 
Jewish community expressed satisfaction with "some" of the 
GOA's responses, they expressed doubts over INADI's 
"ambivalent actions."  End Summary. 
 
¶3. (SBU) As reported reftel, the Argentine Jewish community 
remains outraged over anti-Israeli demonstrations staged by 
leftist organizations outside the Israeli Embassy, the 
headquarters of the Argentine-Israeli Mutual Association 
(AMIA), and a hotel owned by Argentine real estate magnate 
and Treasurer of the World Jewish Congress Eduardo Elsztain. 
They have also publicly expressed concern over the lack of 
official condemnation of the protests, which featured 
anti-Semitic imagery and was led by "piquetero" social 
activist leader Luis D'Elia (reftel).  (Comment:  D'Elia was 
an official in the Nestor Kirchner administration before he 
was sacked for publicly claiming that Iran did not have a 
role in the 1994 AMIA terrorist bombing.  He remains a close 
ally of First Gentleman Nestor Kirchner.) 
 
¶4. (SBU) In response to these concerns, the GOA stepped up 
its efforts to denounce the demonstrations on January 29. 
Maria Jose Lubertino, the President of the GOA's National 
Institute Against Discrimination, Racism and Xenophobia 
(INADI) was the target of criticism by Jewish groups and 
subsequently by the government.  In press reports, Lubertino 
appeared to justify the protests on the grounds of free 
speech.  During a radio interview on January 28, she 
indicated that Israel's military operations in Gaza "violated 
international law, and that turned (public opinion) against 
them."  She was subsequently criticized by the Argentine 
Jewish community and the local press for not condemning 
D'Elia. 
 
GOA REINS IN ANTI-DISCRIMINATION CHIEF... 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) The January 30 edition of left-of-center daily, 
"Critica" reported that former President and First Gentleman 
Nestor Kirchner instructed Minister of Justice Anibal 
Fernandez to reprimand Lubertino and that the Casa Rosada had 
discussed the possibility of asking for Lubertino's 
resignation.  The article went on to explain, however, that 
Fernandez could not do so, since Lubertino's position is 
Congressionally appointed.  As a result, Fernandez privately 
rebuked Lubertino, leaving Cabinet Chief, Sergio Massa, to 
publicly reprimand her, describing her statement as 
"infelicitous" and "poorly phrased".  He added that her 
statement was especially troubling given that Argentina 
enjoys a peaceful "co-existence among religions that we need 
to work to maintain." 
 
...WHO FILES ANTI-DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT SAME DAY 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) According to the English-language daily "The Buenos 
Aires Herald", Massa underscored the government's rejection 
"of any kind of discrimination and anti-Semitism."  He was 
careful to distinguish the Jewish community from the state of 
Israel.  Massa's comments to the press were not only intended 
to set the record straight, but also to rein in Lubertino. 
 
"Critica," citing unspecificed sources within Massa's office, 
indicated that he decided to publicly, instead of privately, 
reprimand Lubertino to ensure that "she understands the 
government,s position on the subject...so that she stops 
giving her opinion on everything."  Thus chastened, Lubertino 
on January 29 announced that INADI launched a probe into the 
recent demonstrations and lodged a criminal complaint on 
January 30 over discriminatory graffiti and banners, 
according to "the Buenos Aires Herald."  (Note: Under 
Argentina's national Anti-Discrimination law, hate speech is 
considered a misdemeanor.  Hate speech can also be an 
aggravating factor in a serious crime, resulting in stiffer 
penalties.) 
 
GOA CONDEMNS ANTI-SEMITISM ESPOUSED BY A FEW 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Meanwhile, Human Rights Secretary Eduardo "Luis" 
Duhalde on January 29 condemned the demonstrations and said 
the GOA would bring legal actions against the demonstrators. 
The GOA will "go to utmost lengths to halt behavior that is 
tinged with racism or discrimination on Argentine territory, 
even if these are perpetrated by a minority", Duhalde said. 
Alluding to Lubertino's statements, Duhalde said "these 
criminal acts...can't be justified by the current 
international situation." 
 
DIFFERENTIATING FREEDOM OF SPEECH FROM HATE SPEECH 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶8. (SBU) The Argentine Ambassador to the United States, 
Hector Timerman, also tried to distance the GOA from 
Lubertino's remarks, saying "anyone has the right to 
criticize the State of Israel, but using a swastika or the 
Star of David is something more troubling -- it is harassment 
of the Argentine Jewish community."   He explained that the 
demonstrations "allegedly criticized the actions of the 
Israeli state, but deep down they also showed a profound 
anti-Semitic streak (which) should not be overlooked."  In a 
radio interview quoted in the local daily "BAE," Timerman 
stressed that Argentina is not an anti-Semitic country, but 
that there are "groups that seek to take advantage of a 
foreign conflict to attack the Argentine Jewish community." 
He indicated that "the demonstrations, which were supposedly 
criticizing the Israeli state, exhibited profound 
anti-Semitism...When a group approaches an office of a Jewish 
businessman and they harass him only because he is Jewish, 
that is anti-Semitism, and that has nothing to do with 
international conflict."  During the radio interview, he 
stressed that Argentina supports the creation of a Palestine 
state. 
 
D'ELIA CONTINUES TO STIR THE POT 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Despite the official and public condemnation of 
D'Elia's role in the protests, the piquetero leader continues 
to spark controversy.  On January 29, he criticized the 
Argentine Jewish community saying "(they) should have joined 
the thousands of Jews that protested in Tel Aviv opposing the 
(Israeli) government's killing and aggression in the Gaza 
Strip.  I would have liked to see them repudiate their 
government's (actions), just like we did."  He then 
criticized Massa on January 30 for publicly rebuking 
Lubertino, saying "she did nothing wrong", and called him a 
"bootlicker of the United States, the U.K., and Israel."  (He 
added that, except for the bootlicking, he gets along fine 
with Massa.) He also urged the GOA not to be "influenced by 
U.S. and Israeli lobbies."  On January 31, Lubertino for the 
first time called on D'Elia to "confirm or retract his 
statements."  According to the press, if D'Elia stands by his 
statements, he will be subject to an investigation for 
discrimination against the Jewish community. 
 
JEWISH COMMUNITY CALLS FOR CONCRETE ACTIONS... 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶10. (SBU) While the Delegation for Argentine-Jewish 
Associations' (DAIA) vice-president Angel Schindel indicated 
that the Jewish community was expecting "concrete actions" 
from the government, he expressed satisfaction with "some" of 
the GOA's responses and doubts over INADI's "ambivalent 
actions."  He expressed hope that the GOA would act 
appropriately against demonstrators that he felt sure were 
"backed by terrorists."  Meanwhile, the victims advocacy 
organization, Friends and Family of Victims of the AMIA 
Bombing, continues to call for Lubertino's resignation. 
 
 
...LUBERTINO OFFERS AN OLIVE BRANCH 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) In an effort to make amends with the Jewish 
community, Lubertino met with AMIA and DAIA leaders on 
February 2.  According to the local press, both the AMIA and 
the DAIA sought to defuse the situation after days of 
confrontation, and stressed that they had never requested 
Lubertino's resignation.  Lubertino informed the Jewish 
community leaders that INADI had filed a legal complaint 
against Socialist Convergence leader, Juan Carlos Beica, for 
the protest against Eduardo Elsztain.  She also informed them 
that INADI would introduce two bills 1) "to criminalize the 
denial of the Holocaust, the Armenian genocide, or state 
terrorism practiced by Argentina's last military 
dictatorship" and 2) to transfer the jurisdiction over Buenos 
Aires city discrimination cases from the city to the federal 
courts in line with the rest of the country.  AMIA Secretary 
General Julio Schlosser subsequently told the press that the 
meeting with Lubertino was "cordial", and unspecified Jewish 
leaders asserted that Lubertino assured them that the press 
had taken her statements out of context.  The Ambassador 
called Lubertino earlier on February 2 and said that we 
appreciated her dedicated work on human rights and against 
discrimination and that we were sure she would do the right 
thing in opposing anti-Semitic activities.  She claimed that 
the press had distorted her words and that she had only meant 
to repeat what the MFA had said in its statement on Gaza. She 
said she would be meeting later that day with DAIA and AMIA 
and that she would pursue any anti-Semitism or racism 
vigorously while protecting free speech. 
 
"La Nacion" Calls Campaign "Perfectly Organized and Financed" 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶12. (SBU) "La Nacion's" lead editorial on February 1 
described the anti-Semitic nature of the protests as 
"unacceptable" and noted that AMIA sources have "indicated, 
with more than enough reason, that these acts are part of a 
'perfectly organized, paid and financed' anti-Jewish 
campaign.  The silence of the nation's governing officials, 
political parties and social sectors is inexcusable."  The 
editorial called on the Argentine public to "seriously treat 
this absurd return to a time fifty years ago when some 
perverse minorities sympathetic to International Nazi-fascism 
conducted even darker anti-Jewish protests...This new 
anti-Semitic outbreak in Argentina should be repudiated and 
condemned..." 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶13. (SBU) In general, anti-Semitic incidents in Argentina are 
largely the result of individual, as opposed to organized, 
systematic acts.  Argentina's established Jewish and Muslim 
communities have co-existed peacefully for generations, and 
the GOA regularly sponsors and participates in interfaith 
dialogues between the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim 
communities.  However, the recent Israeli military operations 
in Gaza and the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict resulted in an 
uptick in reports of anti-Semitic acts throughout the 
country.  It is reassuring that the GOA is condemning 
anti-Semitism and the use of anti-Semitic imagery, while at 
the same time acknowledging the right to free speech for 
those who wish to criticize any of the parties in the Middle 
East conflict.  End Comment. 
WAYNE