Visiting minister hails Argentina’s Irish community on St. Patrick’s Day visit

Saint Patrick’s Day on Monday was celebrated in style by the Irish Embassy on the day itself for the first time in a long while and with all the works – Irish stew, Guinness, Jameson whiskey and Irish coffee along with various more local delicacies.

Among the government representatives travelling to over 90 cities in more than 40 countries to share Saint Patrick’s Day with the Irish diaspora, Argentina’s was more important than most – Jack Chambers, Ireland’s Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services, Reform and Digitalisation and deputy leader of the ruling Fianna Fáil party (and all that at the age of 34). 

Introduced by Irish Ambassador Gerard McCoy hosting the reception, Chambers began by extending his country’s condolences for the Bahía Blanca tragedy. The visiting minister then followed up calls for peace in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip by recalling that March 17 was also the anniversary of the terrorist bomb destruction of the Israeli Embassy (then neighbours with the Irish Embassy) in 1992, stating his nation’s commitment against a terrorism which it has also experienced. 

Ireland is equally committed to defending human rights, he continued, adding that he had learned much about that from meeting the family of the late ex-priest and human rights activist Patrick Rice last Saturday. 

Chambers closed his address to “the largest Irish community outside the English-speaking world” in territory closer to his own portfolio by referring to his meetings with his local counterpart, Deregulation & State Transformation Minister Federico Sturzenegger, and Cabinet Chief Guillermo Francos.