Hear
On the 56th anniversary of the Gate 12 Tragedythis Sunday, the exercise of memory allows us to continue remembering the saddest event that occurred in a soccer stadium in Argentina, in which more than 74 fans died at the exit of a River-Boca game in the Monumental.
In this sense, the Pampas plastic artist Jorge Aranda He shared his most recent work exclusively with LA NACION: the first memorial that will forever honor those who died from that disaster. His source of inspiration is one of the victims: Rubén Ochoa, whose middle name seems predestined: Ángel.
“This is the model of what is going to be the Memorial that we titled ‘The Angel of Door 12’, inspired by Rubén Ochoa”, the artist begins the story with a mixture of pride and emotion in his atelier, surrounded by flowers and fruit trees, located on a silent street in the town of Glew. Self-taught by nature and disciple of Domingo Tellechea in “Restoration of Paintings and Engraving” and of Master Hemenegildo Sábat in regards to “Drawing” and “Watercolor”Aranda knows that this work has a gigantic magnitude, as part of a career that he has been building for 30 years and that took him to different places in Argentina, the United States, Canada and Spain, among other countries in the world.
The sculptor continues, He was 9 years old when the Tragedy of Gate 12 occurred and he still remembers it: “In the play we see Rubén with his flag, the one that wraps his torso and was sewn by his mother. In turn, he is emerging from a flag that has different textures that make the idea of color, since this sculptural group will only have the natural color of the material to be used. That flag connects with his left fist, the fist of the heart, the fist that somehow holds his own flag with the flag that makes him emerge, as if from the tribune, as if clinging to a paraavalanche, clinging to life. And he pushes it up.”
“The wings that Rubén Ángel Ochoa had as implicit in his own name emerge from his back, that makes him, in some way, with this memorial I pass into eternity as referring to that event. That’s why it’s called ‘The Angel of Gate 12’. And then we have the idea of his arm rising to the sky as a question mark about why that tragedy happened,” the artist completes.
In relation to the technical aspect of this work, whose model has already been presented to the INPI (National Institute of Industrial Property) and It is in the stage of searching for financiers to then begin work and define its location.Aranda details: “This small scale model is made of polychrome clay. The original model will be made of solid materials with an iron core and a marble-like finish (marmolite). It will be approximately three and a half meters high. and it will surely be located in a public place. Furthermore, on the pedestal part we have the reference to the date on which this event occurred (June 23, 1968) and each of the plaques will carry inside the name of the 74 registered victimsalthough there will surely be some that will be empty because At Gate 12 there were around 200 victims, whose identity is unknown. That part of the pedestal also refers to a football stadium, but it also speaks of that place from where passion emerges through the flags, through the emotion that is produced as an elevation towards that spirit of feeling that is encouraging a equipment”.
The plan is for the work to have a small esplanade (stand) in the shape of a boat. The visual tour will begin on the back side, and as the first view the name of Rubén Ochoa will be read so that it is associated with the name of the work itself. It is not yet defined where this Memorial will be located. However, those who promote this project together with the artist (friends of Rubén Ochoa’s gallery from that time and the creators of the space @Puerta12memoria) confided to LA NACION that due to the magnitude of the statue and the space it needs to be located (about 10 square meters of surface), they consider that The ideal place would be in the Innovation Park, a few meters from Gate 12, today renamed Gate M.
“It would be a beautiful gesture if the work is financed in equal parts by the leadership of River and Boca, or even the AFA. It would be a way of settle the pending account that those two clubs and Argentine football as a whole have with the victims of its worst tragedy,” friends of Ochoa and the artist himself agree before this newspaper.
The objective of this Memorial is that it not only serves to remember what happened at Puerta 12, which was experienced as a national tragedy (like AMIA, Cromañón, Once and many more in Argentine history), but also as a meeting point to remember each of the people who died in the context of a soccer match, whose number to date, according to the Civil Association Save Football, rises to 352 deaths.
Besides, This Sunday a historic event will take place in the Cathedral of Buenos Aires. At the 11:30 mass, and for the first time since June 23, 1968, “the victims of Gate 12” will be mentioned.. This is thanks to the special request made by Ochoa’s friends from the stands and the creators of the space @Puerta12memoria.
It is June 23, 1968 and Rubén Ángel Ochoa is a happy teenager. He is 17 years old and adores his mother Beatriz. He feels proud of her, who carried on alone with her pregnancy, in an Argentine society that looks askance at single mothers. He loves her so much that she works all day and studies at night, to achieve a better future. They both share a small apartment at Libertad 1613, a few meters from Del Libertador Avenue and Fray Mocho Square, in Retiro.
A Boca fan since he was born and cadet member 5860, he had tried to be a soccer player. He had tried himself in the lower ranks of the blue and gold club, but financial emergencies forced him to leave his dreams for another life and come down to reality. That is why he is an employee of a Bonafide branch located in Independencia and Jujuy. There he is very loved and had established a friendly relationship with Patricia Ferrer. He confessed to her her origins, her love for her mother and he even dared to give her a Nancy Sinatra LP with a special dedication from her.
Rubén likes to go see Boca. He had become friends with several members of the Bar, that at that time had Enrique Ocampo (Quique) as boss and Lechero as leader. It is an ungovernable group, which has clashes in almost every game. With the rival fans and with the Police. But he doesn’t like that. His presence in that group is absolutely peaceful. It is part of the group’s liabilities. Although it has an important role: in times where all the games are played at the same time, With his portable radio, Spika is responsible for announcing the news that comes from other stadiums., through the voice of José María Muñoz or Bernardino Veiga. “Racing goal.” “Lanús goal”. “Hurricane goal,” he warned. That is his leading moment every Sunday.
He feels sheltered by his friends in the stands. So much so that he has a special treatment: In times where flags are kept in bags and transported well guarded to prevent someone from stealing them, he is the only one allowed to transport it on his own.. Her flag is special: her mother had sewn it for her. It is made of taffeta (a silk-like fabric) and measures about 10 meters. She had only been given one condition: that to prevent her from being stolen, he would wrap it in her body. Rubén had understood and accepted it. It’s the way his friends show him affection. He feels loved and cared for.
That Sunday River and Boca equal 0 to 0 at the Monumental. About 15 minutes before the final whistle, the visiting fans begin to prepare for the break-up. In that context, Someone helps Rubén Ochoa wrap the flag around his body. One, two, three, four, ten turns of a cloth that covers him from his armpits to his pelvis. It’s cold, so that’s one more protection for him, who buttons up his jeans and puts his pullover back on, to cover her. He achieves it. Somewhat rigid because of that kind of bandage that turns him into a kind of blue and gold mummy from armpits to groin every time he plays Boca, he begins to withdraw from him, eager to get to his house and hug the girl. his mother
But the unthinkable happens. At the exit from Gate 12, a barrier of 12 police officers prevents free concentration. Behind them, half a dozen agents on horseback (the Mounted) distribute sword blows. The first fans begin to retreat. Those at the top push down, not knowing what is happening. There is squeezing, an avalanche, desperation, screams, darkness, stomping, silence. There are more than 70 deaths. Many more than the 71 stated in the official history written by the de facto government led by General Juan Carlos Onganía. One of them is Rubén Ochoawho dies wrapped in the Boca flag that his beloved mother had sewn for him.
Two days later, the boy is one of the 12 victims who are laid to rest in the Blue Room of the Bombonera. A large group of boys, in respectful silence, approach to say goodbye to him. These are colleagues from the Bonafide trading house, where he worked. Everyone, saddened and moved, agrees in stating that Ochoa had “an unwavering fanaticism for Boca” and that He had once said that if he died he did not want flowers and only wanted to be covered with a flag from the club of his loves. And so it happened.
Already in the cemetery, Agustín Arenas, Boca’s coordination secretary, bids farewell to the remains on behalf of the institution: “Boca is present in this sad hour for national sport. But We are all united to carry forward our colors and honor the memory of our beloved Ochoa. Rest in peace, young friend. If your death has been an injustice, God willed it and we must all accept it.”
