CNN
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Former Uruguay President Jose Musica, a leftist icon known for his progressive social reforms, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 89.
“It is a deep sadness to announce the death of our comrade Pepe Musica,” Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi announced in X.
“President, activist, leader, guide. Dear old man, we miss you so much. We appreciate everything you have given us and for the deep love for your people,” said Orsi, who is close to the late leader. CNN has contacted the President of Uruguayan for more details.
Former guerrilla Folksy is remembered for his modest lifestyle during his presidency. He is famous for avoiding the Presidential Palace to perform his duties from his country farm.
He had been battling cancer more than a year before his death, but told reporters in 2024 that he would fight as much as he could.
“I will continue to fight with my peers, stay true to my way of thinking and entertain myself with vegetables and chicken,” he said. “For the rest, I’m grateful. At the end of the day, I can’t take away what I had.”
“Pepe” Musica, as he is more widely known, entered the national scene in the 1960s as the leader of Tupamaros, a left-wing extremist group that engaged in armed rebellions in the 60s and 70s, after being inspired by the Cuban revolution in the 1960s.
The uprising was suppressed by government forces during Uruguay’s military dictatorship, and then Musica was imprisoned for nearly 15 years, enduring many forms of torture.
Musica spoke about the horrors of that period in 2020. “For six months, I was tied with a wire behind my back and then thrown out of the truck for two or three days. I have to bathe with a bottle, water and a handkerchief for two years, not taking me to the toilet,” he said.
He was released from prison in 1985 after democracy recovered to the country. Four years later, he and other members of Tupamaros established the Movement of Popular Participation (MPP), the party he won several legislative elections.
In 2009 he began bidding for the president, winning by leaks with over 50% of the vote.
Under his surveillance between 2010 and 2015, Uruguay’s economy expanded, and he implemented several progressive reforms. Uruguay has legalized abortion, gay marriage, allowed the use of cannabis recreation, and became the world’s first country.
Musica’s supporters saw him as one of the humble leaders the country has ever had, pointing to his decision to abandon the president’s palace and live in a rural farmhouse during his term.
In 2012 he gave CNN a tour of his farm, showing how he tormented the fields, planted fresh fruits and chrysanthemums, and ran around with old Volkswagen beetles.
His modest life led many to call him the “poorest president of the world.”
“I’m not a poor president. Poor people are people who need a lot of people,” he said in a 2014 interview with CNN. “My definition is Seneca. I am a calm president. I live the way I lived long before I became president, so I hardly need to live. I still live in the same neighborhood, I live in the same way, I live in the same way, I am a Republican president.
In April 2024, Musica announced that he had been diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in his esophagus. After months of treatment, his doctors said in August that cancer in his esophagus appeared to be in remission, but developed “kidney disease” due to radiation therapy to treat the tumor.
In January, he said the cancer had spread to his liver and told Uruguay’s media outlet Busqueda that he was “dying.” He chose to refrain from additional treatment and was asked to be alone at the dusk of his life.
“I’m destined, brother. This is as long as I can go,” he said.
Latin American leaders lamented the former president, saying the region has lost a beacon of hope and humility.
Alberto Fernandez, the former president of nearby Argentina, praised Musica’s humility, calling it “an example of social austerity that rewards those who accumulate wealth.”
Former President Evo Morales, a fellow leftist leader who was in office around the same time as Musica, called him a “brother” full of wisdom, whose teachings continue to live.
Chilean President Gabriel Borik reiterated those feelings and said, “It was somehow hopeful that if you left us something, we could make things better – “In stages, just like you said, don’t leave the rails.”
