Bicentennial of Jujuy Exodus
THE LIVING PROOF OF A COLLECTIVE HEROIC DEED 200 years after the Jujuy Exodus which was a primary link in the struggle for the independence of our country, the entire province prepares celebrations and cultural activities to relive such historic event.
On the 23
rd
, an August message was blowing from the north. Right from that direction, from the Ejército Realista camp, the announcement of an imminent threat was heard. Time to sacrifice was near: people from Jujuy should abandon their land to leave the enemy without all the necessary supplies and goods, and for the sake of the nation. Lead by General Manuel Belgrano and escorted by the Ejército del Norte, they headed south towards an uncertain destination and facing an evident homeless reality. They would leave desert areas, crops on fire, empty houses, and complete devastation behind. The exodus arrived to Tucuman where they bore it stoically.
Battles between patriots and Spanish didn’t stop, however, time and history would show that the historic deed staged by Jujuy’s people in 1812, was a crucial event and unprecedented strategic action towards the undermining of the Ejercito Realista which was seeking to recover the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata after the cry for independence in May 1810. Every August, 23rd, jujeños remember and celebrate such heroic act part of their collective identity. But this year, the bicentennial of the exodus magnifies celebrations with an important number of activities included in the cultural agenda organized by the provincial government, which as Jorge
Noceti, Jujuy’s Secretary of Tourism, explains to Cambio de Aire, «they try to give a new meaning to those values which inspired such deed, and which today help to construct the civic responsibility, nationality and national identity, values such us solidarity, observance of the law, respect for the authority, abnegation, and devotion». «We are planning a number of events such as plays featuring new urban equipment, museums linked to the exodus heroic deed, and temporary exhibitions with recreational timelines to allow children to learn through play», Noceti continues. However, strength not only lies on the commemorative event planning, but mainly on the «activities with more important transcendence than just a mere celebration and which has to do with urban settings like monuments,
... As a result of a bill presented in the Argentine Senate, on October, 28th, 2002 Law 25.664 declares Jujuy province as Capital Honorífica de la Nación Argentina every August, 23 in commemoration of the memorable Jujuy Exodus. 26
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