Miguel Enríquez (politician)

Miguel Enríquez Espinosa (1944-1974) was a Chilean physician and revolutionary leader. He was the General Secretary of the Movement of the Revolutionary Left (MIR), a Marxist-Leninist organization that advocated for armed struggle against the government.

Enríquez was born in Concepción, Chile, into a middle-class family. He studied medicine at the University of Concepción, where he became politically active. He joined the MIR in 1965 and quickly rose through its ranks. In 1967, he was elected as the General Secretary of the organization.

Under Enríquez's leadership, the MIR became a significant force in Chilean politics. The group advocated for radical social and economic change, including the nationalization of key industries and land redistribution. They believed that these changes could only be achieved through armed revolution.

After the 1973 Chilean coup d'état led by General Augusto Pinochet, the MIR was outlawed and its members were heavily persecuted. Enríquez refused to go into exile and remained in Chile to continue the struggle against the military dictatorship.

On October 5, 1974, Enríquez was killed in a gun battle with Chilean security forces in the San Miguel neighborhood of Santiago. His death marked a major blow to the MIR and the Chilean left. He remains a controversial figure in Chilean history, viewed by some as a hero and by others as a violent extremist. His legacy continues to be debated and reinterpreted in the context of Chile's complex political history.