Located in the southeast of South America, Uruguay is a small country with a population of 3.4 million.
It is bordered by Argentina to the west, north-west and south-west, and Brazil to the north-east. The country faces the Atlantic Ocean in the south-east.
Devoted football fans will remember Uruguay as the champions of the inaugural World Cup in 1930 and again in 1950.
Fast forward to 2010. Uruguay became globally famous when it elected an exceptionally unconventional politician, Jose Alberto Mujica, as its president. He departed from the usual norms of a president and courted controversy with his unusual ways. Nevertheless, he was a larger-than-life president.
Mujica was a Uruguayan politician, revolutionary and farmer. He was unknown to the rest of the world when voters elected him as Uruguay’s 40th president at the age of 74. He served as president from 2010 to 2015.
The newly elected president broke with tradition while in office by refusing to stay in the presidential residence. Instead, he chose to live at his house on the outskirts of the capital, Montevideo, with his wife, Lucía Topolansky. He ran a flower farm there, but employed no domestic help and little security.
Mujica donated around 90% of his $12,000 monthly salary to various charities supporting low-income individuals and ordinary business people.
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Driving an old blue 1987 Volkswagen Beetle, was one of his trademarks. Well known for his extremely simple lifestyle, he was nicknamed the “world’s poorest president”.
Surprisingly, Mujica always rejected that title: “They say I’m the poorest president. No, I’m not,” he said in a 2012 interview. “Poor are those who want more because they’re in an endless race.”
From rebel fighter to democratic leader
A former rebel fighter, Mujica played a pivotal role in navigating Uruguay out of military dictatorship towards democracy.
Following a military coup in 1973, the military named Mujica as one of nine hostages they threatened to kill if the guerrillas continued their attacks.
The authorities imprisoned him over 14 years during the 1970s and 1980s, capturing him four times. Mujica spent most of that time in harsh conditions and in isolation, until the authorities freed him in 1985, when Uruguay returned to democracy. Mujica and other rebel fighters gained freedom under an amnesty law.
Military dictatorships were common in Latin America countries from the 1960s to the 1990s, when 12 Latin American countries experienced at least one military coup.
Some of these military regimes gained notoriety for gross human rights violations, torture and forced disappearances of the people.
But brutal dictatorships never survive, always incurring the wrath of the people. Eventually, they are overthrown, yielding to people power.
During traumatic periods of his imprisonment, Mujica suffered from hallucinations, even talking to ants.
The day he was freed was his happiest memory, he said. “Becoming president was insignificant compared to that.”
As a young man, Mujica belonged to the National Party, one of Uruguay’s traditional political forces, which later became the centre-right opposition to his government.
A few years after his release, he served as a lawmaker in both the Chamber of Representatives and in the Senate – the country’s lower and upper houses respectively.
Mujica became a minister in the first government led by Frente Amplio (Broad Front), a left-wing coalition, in 2005 before becoming president in 2010.
Even though he was another left-wing Latin American politician like Luis Incio Lula da Silva in Brazil and Hugo Chávez in Venezuela, Mujica had his own governing style. Whenever the occasions warranted it, he showed astuteness, courage and pragmatism.
During his presidency, Uruguay’s economy grew at an average annual rate of 5.4%, poverty fell and unemployment remained low.
Mujica had his fair share of shortcomings too.
Despite Mujica advocating frugality, critics attacked his government for increased public spending and widening the fiscal deficit. His opponents also criticised him for wastage.
Critics also attacked Mujica for failing to address issues related to Uruguay’s education system. He had promised that reforming education would be his administration’s top priority.
Nevertheless, he distinctly differed from other Latin American leaders. No allegations of corruption or undermining Uruguay’s democratic values ever surfaced during his presidency. This was a feather in his cap during his tenure in office.
Final years and legacy
By the end of his term, Mujica enjoyed a high popularity rating of nearly 70%. After he stepped down as president, voters elected him a senator, and he spent part of his time travelling the world.
In 2024, Mujica openly confirmed he was suffering from oesophageal cancer, stating that death was just round the corner. With courage, grit and resilience, he said, “Honestly, I’m dying. A warrior has the right to rest.”
Even as his health deteriorated, Mujica was not deterred from campaigning for the Broad Front’s Yamandú Orsi, who won the 2024 presidential election. Mujica later said that Orsi’s victory was a “farewell gift” to him.
In January 2025, Mujica decided to discontinue further medical treatment and was then placed in hospice care. He passed away on 13 May at the age of 89.
Tributes from across Latin America
Upon his passing, Latin America leaders paid glowing tributes to this iconic politician.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum posted on social media: “We are deeply saddened at the passing of our beloved Pepe Mujica, an example to Latin America and the entire world for his wisdom, foresight and simplicity.”
Chile’s President Gabriel Boric, remembered Mujica’s optimism in a post of his own. “If you left us anything, it was the unquenchable hope that things can be done better.”
Colombian President Gustavo Petro wrote in the wake of Mujica’s passing: “Goodbye friend, I hope that Latin America will one day have an anthem, as he envisioned a more unified region.”
Very movingly, Mujica once said, “One knows that death is inevitable, perhaps it’s like the salt of life.”
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
- Galakkan pembangunan saksama, lestari serta tangani krisis alam sekitar
- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
In an ideal world, every leader should emulate Pres Mujica to the best of their ability.
Sadly, finding a leader like former President Mujica is like finding a needle in a haystack.