After the defeat in the plebiscite, Gabriel Boric carries out a profound reform of his government and turns to the center

The president of Chile, Gabriel Boric, did this Tuesday a profound remodeling of your closet which struck important figures, including the Ministers of the Interior, Izkia Siches; of the presidency, Giorgio Jackson, and to the political committee, the nucleus in which draft decisions are taken in the Palacio de La Moneda.

“Maybe, I don’t have to hide it, one of the most politically difficult moments I have had to accept. And we will do it together for Chilean men and women, and for Chile “, said Boric after the change of government, which according to the president was” to give greater cohesion “to the government.

government reshuffle, turning left centeris the first in his nearly six months in office, takes place two days after the overwhelming rejection victory in the plebiscite to change the Constitution, and takes place amid pressure from the opposition and tensions within the left-wing coalition in which the president supports.

Boric appointed new interior minister Carolina Tohadaughter of Jose Tohá, Prime Minister of the Interior in the government of deposed President Salvador Allende and one of the men who were kidnapped and imprisoned by the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990) and a member of the Party for Democracy (PPD), in the center.

As minister of the presidency, the president has chosen Ana Lya Uriarte, a woman from the Socialist Party with an extensive career and political experience.

Jackson, one of the men closest to the president, a partner in the student protests, remains in the Government as the new Minister of Social Development and the Family, while the epidemiologist Ximena Aguilera is incorporated as the new Minister of Health.

The Executive also includes Diego Pardow, a member of Social Convergence, the same party as the president, as Energy Minister, and Silvia Díaz, an independent close to the PPD, who becomes the Prime Minister of Science in the history of Chile.

Dispute

The announcement of the changes and the inauguration ceremony were delayed by more than an hour, apparently due to the controversy sparked by the appointment of former student leader and member of the Communist Party, Nicolás Cataldo, as Undersecretary of the Interior. who became the lowest undersecretary in Chilean history.

Shortly afterwards the news broke, representatives of the opposition and the local newspaper “Third” saved by social networks, primarily Twitter, the messages of Cataldo in 2011 in which he harshly criticized the military accusing them of infiltrate protests, torture and overcome their powers.

One of the most critical of the appointment was the former Minister of Education, Marcela Cubillos, who assured that “if it is true, the government he decided to laugh in the faces of the victims violence and the southern macrozone “, in relation to the conflict in Araucanía.

Cataldo would take the place of Manuel Monsalve, a leading exponent of the PPD who sounded like the new minister of the Presidency, and who after the dismissal of Cataldo – whose appointment had been made official by the Presidency – remained in office.

Other changes

At the Ministry of Health, Begoña Yarza has left her post and Ximena Aguilera has taken her place after criticism of the management of the pandemic by the hitherto chief of the health portfolio.

In the Science portfolio, Flavio Salazar left and Silvia Día became the owner of the portfolioz, who was director of the Future Congress, a science and innovation forum.

The Ministry of Energy was left to lead Diego Pardow after the departure of former incumbent Claudio Huepe.

With the changes, the government keeps the promise of gender equality in the ministerial cabinet with 15 women and 9 men in office.

Source: EFE and AFP

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