Javier: Our Uncle from Argentina

Our Uncle from Argentina, Javier

Purim has arrived, and this column is also in costume: a few words in honor of the holiday, about our friend Javier – the colorful and unique President of Argentina, who gives hope for a better world.

By: Anat Vidor, President of WIZO

Photo credit: AP Images

Oh, I can’t deal with these Argentinians anymore, they who love us more than we love ourselves. And we must admit: we’re really not used to this! We’re used to being hated! Love takes us out of our comfort zone! And we’re not talking about Micronesia, or some undeclared island between the Philippines and Mars. This is Argentina! The ninth largest country in the world, 120 times larger than Israel, with a team that won the last World Cup, on penalties admittedly, but let’s not be petty.

His name is Javier Milei, and he’s our uncle from Argentina who doesn’t stop sending gifts. A Zionist who studies Torah, hangs out with Chabad followers, even considered converting to Judaism. His entry into the position of President of Argentina more than a year ago unexpectedly created for us a Zionist brotherhood front in blue and white, which recently earned Milei the “Genesis” award – “the Jewish Nobel” – for his uncompromising support of Israel.

With the return of the bodies of the Bibas family to Israel, Milei declared a national day of mourning in Argentina – and why just one day of mourning if it can be rounded up to two? This gesture was accompanied by a mass rally in Buenos Aires with tens of thousands of Argentinians who came to support Israel, and with a city initiative, a kind of spin-off of the first idea, to change the name of “Palestine Street” in the city to “Bibas Street”! You’ve got to see it to believe it!

For Milei, this is nothing unusual. One of his most consistent activities is to move us emotionally time after time. He stood at the UN and attacked the anti-Semitic organization for its one-sided policies, and for the fact that non-democratic countries give scores to others on human rights issues. He waves Israeli flags at demonstrations against Hamas, dances with Jews to the tune of “Am Yisrael Chai” (The People of Israel Live), and schemes about moving the Argentinian embassy to Jerusalem. “We are with you in your war against the forces of darkness,” he told Knesset Speaker Ohana, the simple and natural truth that Emmanuel Macron, for example, would never utter.

And yes, I know what you’ll say, there are always skeptics. Some will say he’s an eccentric president, unpredictable; in his country, some call him “El Loco” – the crazy one. He appointed his sister as “First Lady,” cloned his deceased dog into six new dogs, which he claims are his political cabinet, went wild on television panels he participated in, appeared at rock concerts, was a soccer goalkeeper. But you know what? That’s exactly how I want them, the world’s shapers and builders of the future – colorful, brave, original, convention-breakers, uninhibited in the race for good. That’s how I like them – lovers of Israel, honest and direct, and also unpredictable – because hey – are we predictable? Is the world predictable?

It’s Purim today, time to dress up as someone else, and this column has also taken a different direction for the occasion. So, let’s raise a cup of mate, say “L’chaim,” and wish us all a happy and humorous Purim, with lots of love for Israel, love for Argentina, and goodness in our hearts.