DistantNews
Support us
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Culture & Society

Chile Declares Two Days of National Mourning for Socialist Leader Camilo Escalona

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Newswire Official statement Outcome reported
  • Chilean President José Antonio Kast declared national mourning on Sept. 5 and 6 after the death of former Socialist Party president Camilo Escalona at age 71.
  • Escalona, who also served as Senate president, was a prominent figure in the political coalition that governed Chile after Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship.
  • Tributes from across Chile’s political spectrum will continue at the Socialist Party headquarters and in the Senate.

Chile will observe two days of national mourning for Camilo Escalona Medina, a veteran Socialist Party leader who died in Santiago at 71. President José Antonio Kast ordered the official mourning for Sept. 5 and 6 after Escalona’s health deteriorated in connection with prostate cancer.

Escalona had served as president of the Socialist Party and remained its secretary-general. He was also a deputy, senator and president of the Senate from 2012 to 2013. His death prompted recognition from much of Chile’s political spectrum, including Kast, who had stood on the opposite side of the political divide.

I regret the death of Camilo Escalona. I knew him as a deputy. We stood on opposite political sides. I recognize in him someone who exercised his leadership clearly and directly.

· José Antonio KastThe Chilean president expressed condolences after Escalona’s death.

“I regret the death of Camilo Escalona. I knew him as a deputy. We stood on opposite political sides. I recognize in him someone who exercised his leadership clearly and directly,” Kast wrote on X. He added that Escalona “dedicated his life to defending his convictions and served them through the institutions of the nation.”

He dedicated his life to defending his convictions and served them through the institutions of the nation as a deputy, senator and president of the Senate.

· José Antonio KastKast recognized Escalona’s political career in his statement of condolences.

Escalona played a key role in the history of Chile’s Concertación, the coalition formed between the end of Augusto Pinochet’s military dictatorship and the democratic governments that followed. He led the Socialist Party three times, from 1994 to 1998, from 2001 to 2003, and from 2006 to 2010, during the consolidation of socialism as one of the central parties in the coalition that governed Chile for two decades.

His remains were taken to the Socialist Party headquarters in central Santiago, where tributes were scheduled to continue before the funeral observances moved to the Senate. Former President Gabriel Boric also paid tribute, saying he had promised Escalona’s partner, Jimena, that younger generations would learn about his struggle and commitment.

Yesterday, accompanied by his partner Jimena, I said goodbye to him, and I promised that the new generations would know about his struggle and commitment, because thanks to him and his generation we are here.

· Gabriel BoricThe former president paid tribute to Escalona on social media.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog