Argentine crisis forces sale of icon Che's birthplace
( 2002-05-02 13:51 ) (7 )

The apartment where revolutionary hero Ernesto "Che" Guevara was born in central Argentina has been put up for sale -- because Argentina's crippling economic crisis has made its upkeep too expensive for the owner.

Argentine-born Guevara was born in the five-room apartment in Rosario northwest of Buenos Aires in 1928. Some thirty years later he become the leader of the Cuban revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power.

"I'm selling the apartment because of the crisis. The upkeep costs a lot," owner Alicia Maria Repetto, who bought the property 25 years ago unaware of its heritage, told Reuters on Wednesday.

"I have called the Cuban embassy to see if they are interested in buying it," she added, saying the apartment had not yet been valued.

Argentina is stuck in a four year recession that has culminated in the Latin American nation's worst ever economic crisis.

Che's family moved to nearby Cordoba when he was very young to help treat his asthma. The house they lived in there has since been turned into a museum to the Marxist icon.