{"id":48333,"date":"2025-05-15T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/?p=48333"},"modified":"2025-05-16T09:25:35","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T12:25:35","slug":"from-uruguay-to-the-world-the-last-goodbye-to-jose-mujica","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/from-uruguay-to-the-world-the-last-goodbye-to-jose-mujica\/","title":{"rendered":"From Uruguay to the world: The last goodbye to Jos\u00e9 Mujica"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Uruguay is a sui generis<\/em> case of its kind\u2014a country born out of the intervention of a foreign power, destined to be a buffer state between two giants who, in its early years, constantly vied to take control of its scarce territory. And despite so many assaults, Uruguay has managed to endure thanks to the heroic efforts of a political class that has (re)built a solid democracy. In its nearly 200 years of history, the legacy of several leaders persists, but none has had the international impact of Jos\u00e9 Mujica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The passing of Jos\u00e9 \u201cPepe\u201d<\/a> Mujica leaves the Uruguayan left orphaned. The inevitable course of human existence has taken with it the last great figure of the Broad Front. A departure that saddens an entire nation, though it surprised no one. Mujica had announced in April 2024 that he was suffering from an esophageal tumor\u2014a diagnosis which, together with his advanced age, led to his rapid decline in a matter of months. Although his body failed him, his mind remained as lucid and strategic as ever. During that time, he quietly mapped out his final move\u2014one that resulted in the Broad Front\u2019s return to presidential power. And in a Latin America where far-right liberalisms are on the rise, the final contributions of those figures who once fueled the celebrated progressive era become especially significant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How is it possible that a former guerrilla became a global icon? By way of redemption. Mujica never denied his past as a member of the armed Tupamaros<\/em> movement; on the contrary, he acknowledged that the people had every right to judge and even condemn him for it. Yet suffering under the hardships of a dictatorship transformed him into a staunch democrat\u2014an image far stronger than his earlier actions. His methods may be criticized, but no one can deny that his fight was against authoritarianism, not the will of the people. The Uruguayan public understood this, and while many never forgave him, neither did they turn a blind eye. Once free and back in a democracy, Mujica was destined to become a significant figure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Mujica phenomenon\u2014at times inexplicable\u2014is also the result of a left that managed to establish itself over time. Uruguay joined the region\u2019s progressive turn somewhat late. In a country traditionally governed by center-right forces, the sweeping victory of Tabar\u00e9 V\u00e1zquez in 2004 was a major test for the Broad Front. For many, the coalition\u2019s rise was the outcome of fatigue from previous administrations, worn down by economic crisis and lacking the energy to rebuild the country. Thus, a new project was born\u2014an experiment filled with hope that, in the following years, proved successful and doubled down, winning again with its most unconventional candidate: \u201cPepe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike V\u00e1zquez, a technocratic-style socialist, Mujica was, at his core, a political animal. He lacked formal education, but didn\u2019t need it. During his imprisonment under the last dictatorship (1973\u20131985), this rough-edged man spent nearly seven years without reading a book, and in his own words, avoided \u201cfalling into madness\u201d by befriending his own mind. Thinking allowed him to forge a unique vision\u2014not just of politics, but of life as a philosophy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was famed for his altruism, earning the title of \u201cthe world\u2019s humblest head of state,\u201d but his personal simplicity did not translate into apathetic governance. His administration focused on building a true welfare state, pushing through reforms such as the legalization of abortion, same-sex marriage, and marijuana. On the international stage, he turned Uruguay into a human rights ally: recognizing the sovereignty of Palestine, welcoming Syrian refugees, and even taking in detainees from Guant\u00e1namo Bay. Nearly three governments later\u2014including one from the opposite political camp\u2014none of his social policies have been rolled back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mujica silenced critics through political action, yes\u2014but above all through a stance grounded in opposition to hatred. In his final years, the former president combined messages of tolerance with resilience, never losing his distinctive tone. He was a reference point for those who shared his ideology, an adversary to his opponents\u2014but never an enemy, not even to his former repressors. He received visits from all walks of life\u2014from friends like Brazilian President Luiz In\u00e1cio Lula da Silva, to icons like acclaimed actress Glenn Close, to controversial figures such as Spain\u2019s former king, Juan Carlos I, whom Mujica had sit in a rustic chair made from plastic bottle caps. And while that \u201chumbled\u201d the monarch\u2019s lavish lifestyle, he didn\u2019t so much as flinch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each and every one of them had something to discuss with Mujica, because he knew exactly which chord to strike to enrich the conversation. His fame grew to such heights that he even dabbled in being a \u201cfilm star,\u201d with two premieres at the 2018 Venice Film Festival: El Pepe: A Supreme Life<\/em>, a documentary by Serbian director Emir Kusturica, and A Twelve-Year Night<\/em> by Uruguayan filmmaker \u00c1lvaro Brechner, a portrayal of Mujica\u2019s years in prison alongside Mauricio Rosencof and Eleuterio Fern\u00e1ndez Huidobro. There may be no other living global leader who inspired such myth around himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The physical disappearance of Jos\u00e9 \u201cPepe\u201d Mujica saddens Uruguay, but it also marks a great loss for Latin America as a whole. The continent is left without charismatic leadership, while politicians are forced to confront a world marked by overlapping crises. And as voices rise that threaten the survival of democracy, the challenge is to keep alive the legacy of those who learned that intolerance is never the answer. \u201cPepe\u201d left behind a great deal of unfinished work for the generations to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*Machine translation proofread by Jana\u00edna da Silva.<\/sub><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As voices emerge that threaten the survival of democracy, the challenge is to keep alive the legacy of those who learned that intolerance will never be the solution.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":680,"featured_media":48318,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17157,17047,16826],"tags":[15635],"gps":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-48333","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-politia-en","8":"category-lideres-politicos-en","9":"category-uruguay-en","10":"tag-debates"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/680"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48333\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48333"},{"taxonomy":"gps","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/latinoamerica21.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/gps?post=48333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}