Maya Alejandra Fernández Allende (born 27 September 1971, in Santiago de Chile[1]) is a Chilean biologist, veterinarian and politician, a member of the Socialist Party of Chile (PS) who has been serving as Minister of National Defense of Chile since 11 March 2022. Since March 2018, she has served as a deputy of the Republic, representing the 10th district, Metropolitan Region. In her first legislative year, she presided over the Chamber of Deputies between March 2018 and March 2019.
Maya Fernández Allende | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister of National Defense of Chile | |
| Assumed office 11 March 2022 | |
| President | Gabriel Boric |
| Preceded by | Baldo Prokurica |
| Member of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile | |
| In office 2014–2022 | |
| President of Chamber of Deputies of Chile | |
| In office 11 March 2018 – 19 March 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Fidel Espinoza |
| Succeeded by | Iván Flores |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 27 September 1971 Santiago, Chile |
| Political party | Socialist Party of Chile |
| Alma mater | University of Chile |
| Occupation | Biologist |
Early life and education
editBorn in Chile to Cuban diplomat Luis Fernández Oña and Beatriz Allende Bussi, she is a grandchild of the Chilean President Salvador Allende.[2] She and her family had to emigrate to Cuba due to the military coup of 11 September 1973 against her grandfather,[3] staying on the island until she was 21 years old. She returned to Chile in 1990, settling permanently in 1992.[4] The same year she began studying biology at the University of Chile. She subsequently also studied veterinary medicine at the same university and obtained a BSc in both.[5]
Political career
editIn 1992 she joined the Socialist Party of Chile.[4] In the 2008 municipal elections, she was elected councilor for the Nuñoa commune, which she stayed until 2012.[5] During the presidency of Milchelle Bachelet between 2006 and 2012, she worked in the Ministry of Foreign Relations.[2] In the municipal elections of 2012, she ran for the mayorship of Ñuñoa for the Socialist Party on the Concertation list.[6] The favorite to win the elections was Pedro Sabat, who had been serving as mayor of Nuñoa for the past 16 years.[7] Fernandez at first won the elections by a slim margin of twenty votes, a result which was appealed by Sabat, who in turn came out victorious after a recount which gave him a thirty-vote lead.[7]
Member of Parliament
editIn the 2013 parliamentary elections, Fernández ran for the position of deputy for the 21st district, which includes the communes Nuñoa and Providencia from the metropolitan communes of Santiago. From 11 March 2014 to 11 March 2018, she represented the 21st district for the PS in the Chamber of Deputies.[4] In the 2017 parliamentary elections, she was re-elected deputy, this time for the newly created 10th district of the Metropolitan Region.[4] On the 11 March 2018, she became president of the Chamber of Deputies.[4] She left office in March 2019.[4]
Minister of Defense
editSince March 2022 Fernández serves as the Minister of Defense in the Cabinet of Gabriel Boric.[4] Referring to the military coup her grandfather and former President of Chile was killed, she saw the role of the Chilean Military to defend Chile as a country and not to get involved in internal security.[8]
Personal life
editShe is the daughter of Cuban diplomat and politician of the Cuban Communist Party Luis Fernández Oña and surgeon Beatriz Allende Bussi,[2] and the youngest granddaughter of former President Salvador Allende.[2] She is also a niece to Senator Isabel Allende.[4] Being a volunteer firefighter of Nuñoa,[2] she is married to Tomás Monsalve Egaña and has two children.[4]
References
edit- ^ "Portal de Ñuñoa". 16 January 2012. Archived from the original on 16 January 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Artaza, Francisco (24 January 2022). "Quién es Maya Fernández, la nueva ministra de Defensa de Gabriel Boric". La Tercera. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
- ^ Vogt, Jürgen (23 January 2022). "Neues Kabinett in Chile: 14 Frauen in der Regierung". Die Tageszeitung: taz (in German). ISSN 0931-9085. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Chile, BCN Biblioteca del Congreso Nacional de (2020). "Maya Alejandra Fernández Allende. Reseñas biográficas parlamentarias". bcn.cl. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
- ^ a b "Maya Fenández". The Progressive Post. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
- ^ "Au Chili, le centre gauche retrouve l'espoir de revenir au pouvoir en 2013". Le Monde.fr (in French). 5 December 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
- ^ a b "Chilean electoral tribunal overturns Fernández Allende's mayoral victory". the Guardian. 13 November 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
- ^ Palma, Natalia (17 April 2022). "Ministra Maya Fernández Allende: "El rol de las FF.AA no es el orden público" « Diario y Radio Universidad Chile". Radio Universidad de Chile (in European Spanish). Retrieved 20 September 2022.