José Mujica, the World’s Poorest President, Has Passed Away | Gita Blog Sport
Gitablogsport.com - José Alberto Mujica Cordano, widely known as “Pepe” Mujica, has died at the age of 89. The former guerrilla fighter, who served as President of Uruguay from 2010 to 2015, was internationally renowned for his humble lifestyle earning him the nickname “the world’s poorest president”.
Due to his austere way of living, Mujica became an iconic political figure across Latin America and beyond. His global recognition was considered unusual for a leader from Uruguay, a nation of just 3.4 million people.
Mujica often said his passion for politics, reading, and farming was inherited from his mother, who raised him in a middle-class home in Montevideo, the capital city.
In his youth, Mujica was a member of the National Party, a traditional political force in Uruguay, which later became the center-right opposition during his presidency.
In the 1960s, he co-founded the Tupamaros National Liberation Movement (MLN-T), a left-wing urban guerrilla group responsible for various acts of resistance, including armed robberies, kidnappings, and executions though Mujica always denied being personally involved in any killings.
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Influenced by the Cuban Revolution and international socialism, the MLN-T launched a covert resistance against Uruguay’s democratic but increasingly authoritarian government.
During this era, Mujica was arrested four times. In 1970, he was shot six times and nearly died. He escaped prison twice once through a tunnel along with 105 other MLN-T inmates in one of Uruguay’s most daring prison breaks.
After the 1973 military coup, Mujica became one of nine high-profile hostages threatened with execution if guerrilla activity continued. He spent over 14 years in prison, much of it in solitary confinement, enduring torture and severe psychological distress claiming he once talked to ants during periods of hallucination.
He was released in 1985 when Uruguay restored democratic rule. Mujica later described that day as the happiest moment of his life more significant than becoming president.
From Rebel to Head of State
Several years after his release, Mujica entered parliament, serving in both the lower and upper chambers. In 2005, he was appointed Minister of Agriculture under the first Frente Amplio left-wing coalition government. In 2010, at the age of 74, he was elected President of Uruguay, despite still being relatively unknown globally.
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His election was a milestone for Latin America’s left, placing him alongside leaders like Brazil’s Lula da Silva and Venezuela’s Hugo Chávez. However, Mujica was praised for his pragmatism and courage in governance.
Despite global economic uncertainty, Uruguay’s economy grew at an average of 5.4%, poverty declined, and unemployment remained low. The country also drew international attention for progressive laws, such as the legalization of abortion, same-sex marriage, and marijuana regulation.
Mujica refused to live in the presidential palace. Instead, he remained in his modest farmhouse on the outskirts of Montevideo with his wife, former guerrilla fighter and politician Lucía Topolansky without household staff and with minimal security. He was known for his casual clothing and his light-blue 1987 Volkswagen Beetle.
He donated most of his salary to social causes, earning the moniker “the world’s poorest president” in the media. But Mujica rejected the label: “They call me the poorest president. No, I’m not,” he said in a 2012 interview. “Poor are those who always crave more… because they live in an endless competition.”
Despite advocating simplicity, Mujica's administration significantly increased public spending, widening the fiscal deficit and drawing criticism from political opponents. He also faced backlash for failing to reform Uruguay’s struggling education system, despite naming it a top priority.
Still, unlike many regional leaders, Mujica was never accused of corruption or authoritarianism.
At the end of his presidency, he maintained a high domestic approval rating (nearly 70%) and was elected senator. He traveled widely after stepping down in 2015, eventually retiring from politics in 2020.
Last year, Mujica announced that he had cancer. He spoke openly and calmly about death, without dramatizing it. In his final interview with the BBC in November, he remarked: “People know that death is inevitable. Maybe it’s the salt of life.”