South American Case Studies: Ecuador and Argentina

Ecuador is one of Israel’s oldest friends in Latin America. In 1963 Ecuador and Bolivia were the first Latin American countries to adopt Israel’s Nahal-type military-agricultural programs, which introduced the use of armed forces for agricultural tasks. The program was intended to provide a model for civic action and a way of tackling national problems. More importantly, since the military had recently ousted the constitutional government, the program’s aim of building a positive and constructive image of the armed forces was particularly relevant.1 Seven years after the program was inaugurated, an Ecuadoran military publication wrote of the Nahal program: The State of Israel, through the Units of Nahal, shows us a new road in military organization and philosophy. It is showing us that the armed forces can widen the scope of their activities, for the benefit of the rural population, with a humanitarian mission … and even more, it has demonstrated to us that the soldier-farmer is the one who defends his farm with greater eagerness and heroism, and while defending his land, his family, he is defending his fatherland.2