Saturday, 16 September, is the 30th anniversay of La Noche de los Lápiches (The Night of the Pencils), another sad but notable event from the most recent dictatorship in Argentina. Last year I wrote extensively about the march that took place on the 29th anniversary.

Since it’s the 30th anniversary there should be an equally large gathering. On the radio this morning I heard about a march planned for Friday evening at 6pm from Facultad to Plaza de Mayo. Today there is also a teachers strike at the University of Buenos Aires. I won’t be covering the march this year since I’ve made prior plans to hear a friend sing Celtic music.

Last year’s march was one of the largest that I saw in 2005. But last year there also was more tension between the piquetero groups and the police. Last year’s Night of the Pencils march was just one week after a very tense confrontation between piqueteros and police at the intersection of Av de Mayo and Av 9 de Julio. That march was originally planned to be an anti-Bush protest in anticipation of Bush’s visit to the summit in Mar del Plata. A large number of students were mixed in with the piquetero groups but the whole thing turned ugly when the police blocked Av de Mayo and pulled up the truck with the water cannon. It eventually ended in a few hardcore piqueteros throwing stones at the police while the other marchers walked away.

So, the following week on the 29th anniversary of the Night of the Pencils the turnout was enormous. The marchers made it to the plaza where I watched a number of young people (not piqueteros) paint graffiti on the monument in the middle of Plaza de Mayo.

The monument was quickly repainted by the next morning. Tonight’s march should be interesting but not as exciting as last year. I don’t know if there are any commemorative activities planned for Saturday, the actual anniversary. (People here seem to like to march on Fridays).

As disturbing as history

Ok, I’ve not been keeping up with the news the last few days, via Clarin I just learned about a controversial entry in the Spanish version of Wikipedia about la Noche de los Lápiches.

The entry has been updated but see this link for an older version of the entry on La Noche de los Lápiches that claims la noche de los lápices was invented by terrorist organizations and that the seven youths who were kidnapped by the government on 16 September 1976 were actually terrorists. What is disturbing is that this viewpoint that the military government of 1976-1983 was in a struggle against terrorism is still accepted among certain parts of Argentine society. Admittedly, Argentina during the 1960s-1970s is a very complicated history - one that everyone needs to reflect upon.

Across Av Caseros from the old prison is a very nice park, Parque Ameghino. I’m very fond of the parks and plazas scattered through Buenos Aires, so I thought I would check this one out.

Just after entering the park I saw a small sign with a brief history of the park. The park was originally the Cemeterio del Sur, which dates back to 1867. The next year 1,400 victims of the cholera epidemic were buried there. Just a few years later during the 1871 Yellow Fever epidemic more than 14,000 people who died from the disease were buried in the cemetery.

A monument to the victims of Yellow Fever is at the center of the park. The monument has a nicely detailed scene.

On his excellent blog dedicated to Parque Patricios Gabriel has much more information (in Spanish) about Parque Ameghino, the monument, and the history of the cemetery.

When I was at the park I kept wondering what happened to those that were buried there. Gabriel provides one clue and photo at the end of his posting that indicates the location of a small rise in the land in the park, which according to a local historian, is the spot of a common grave.

At some point I’m wanting to do more research into the Yellow Fever epidemic of 1871. A few years ago I read a fascinating book Yellow Fever and the South. That’s the American South not South America. But I think an interesting book to research and write someday is an examination and comparison of 19th century Yellow Fever epidemics in both North and South America. There are surely some fascinating stories to uncover. Well, guess I just add that to my long list of things to do!

Continuing my walk along Av Caseros beyond the hospital zone I saw on the next block an old building with a turret. At first I couldn’t imagine it’s purpose, thinking that the turret must have simply been decorative. That would have made for a rather odd touch but then there are a lot of unusual buildings in Buenos Aires.

Then I remembered a recent conversation with Robert who mentioned the old prison in Parque Patricios. From half a block away the prison wasn’t what I was expecting. Perhaps it was the seemingly innocuous nature of the place but the Old Jail in St. Augustine, Florida came to my mind. Yet, this was no tourist attraction. As I rounded the corner I saw the full extent of the abandoned prison and the more recent two towers that contained the cell blocks at the rear.

Robert has a couple of posts about the old prison: one about a documentary of interviews with political prisoners who were housed in the prison. Another about a recent art project about faces that appear in the windows of the prison. I remember Robert telling me about this project and reading his post on it last month. So, when I was there on Saturday I went down the side street and looked for the faces. Honestly, I couldn’t quite see anything that looked like faces. I did see the windows and the patterns but the shapes didn’t quite appear to me. But after reading Robert’s post again, perhaps I wasn’t standing at the appropriate angle. So, I’m going back for another look.

Besides, Gabriel’s blog dedicated to Parque Patricios reveals that the barrio - like so many areas of Buenos Aires - offers much more to explore.

There’s still more to come from my walk last Saturday, stay tuned.