{{Short description|Chilean politician (1923–1997)}} {{Family name hatnote|Almeyda|Medina|lang=Chilean}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = | image = Clodomiro Almeyda.jpg | image_size = | caption = | office = [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Chile)|Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile]] | term_start = 9 August 1973 | term_end = 11 September 1973 | president = [[Salvador Allende]] | predecessor = [[Orlando Letelier]] | successor = [[Ismael Huerta]] | term_start2 = 3 November 1970 | term_end2 = 22 May 1973 | president2 = Salvador Allende | predecessor2 = [[Gabriel Valdés]] | successor2 = Orlando Letelier | office3 = [[Ministry of National Defense (Chile)|Minister of National Defense of Chile]] | term_start3 = 5 July 1973 | term_end3 = 9 August 1973 | president3 = Salvador Allende | predecessor3 = [[José Tohá]] | successor3 = [[Carlos Prats]] | office4 = [[Ministry of Mining (Chile)|Minister of Mining of Chile]] | term_start4 = 25 June 1953 | term_end4 = 14 October 1953 | president4 = [[Carlos Ibáñez del Campo]] | predecessor4 = [[Rafael Tarud]] | successor4 = Francisco Cuevas Mackenna | office5 = [[Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare (Chile)|Minister of Labor of Chile]] | term_start5 = 3 November 1952 | term_end5 = 10 March 1953 | president5 = Carlos Ibáñez del Campo | predecessor5 = [[Juan Atala]] | successor5 = Leandro Moreno Garrido | birth_name = José Clodomiro Almeyda Medina | birth_date = {{Birth date|1923|2|11|df=yes}} | birth_place = [[Santiago]], Chile | death_date = {{Death date and age|1997|8|25|1923|2|11|df=yes}} | death_place = Santiago, Chile | death_cause = | other_names = | party = [[Socialist Party of Chile]] | alma_mater = [[University of Chile]] | resting_place = [[Santiago General Cemetery]] | known_for = | signature = }}
'''José Clodomiro Almeyda Medina'''<ref>{{cite web |title=José Clodomiro Almeyda Medina (1923-1997) |url=https://archivocidoc.uft.cl/index.php/jose-clodomiro-almeyda-medina-1923-1997;isaar?sf_culture=es |website=Centro de Investigación y Documentación, Facultad de Humanidades y Comunicationes |publisher=[[Finis Terrae University| Universidad Finis Terrae]] |access-date=21 July 2025}}</ref> (February 11, 1923 – August 25, 1997) was a [[Chilean people|Chilean]] lawyer, professor and politician. A leading member of the [[Socialist Party of Chile]], he served as [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Chile)|Minister of Foreign Affairs]] from 1970 to 1973 during the [[presidency of Salvador Allende]].
== Biography == === Early life === Almeyda was born in [[Santiago]]. After studying at the German High School and Application High School of Santiago, he enrolled at the Faculty of Law of the [[University of Chile]]. He graduated in 1948 with a thesis entitled ''Hacia una teoría marxista del Estado'' ("Towards a [[Marxism|Marxist]] Theory of the State"). He later worked as a professor of [[political science]] at the Department of Sociology at the university.
=== Political career === He joined the [[Socialist Party of Chile]] in 1941, and participated in the [[Popular Socialist Party (Chile)|Popular Socialist Party]] during the internal rifts in the first part of the 1950s. During the second government of [[Carlos Ibáñez del Campo]] he was Minister of Labor and Mining, standing out in his first ministry for being a promoter for the [[Workers' United Center of Chile]] (CUT). Almeyda resigned from his ministerial roles in 1953, due to conflicts between his party and Ibáñez del Campo.<ref name="Udg">{{cite web |title=Almeyda Medina, Clodomiro |url=http://enciclopedia.udg.mx/biografias/almeyda-medina-clodomiro |website=Enciclopedia histórica y biográfica de la Universidad de Guadalajara |publisher=[[University of Guadalajara|Universidad de Guadalajara]] |access-date=20 July 2025 |language=es}}</ref> With the reunification of the Socialist Party in 1957, he rejoined the organization and was a member of the [[Chamber of Deputies]] between 1961 and 1965. From 1966, he served as director of the School of Sociology of the University of Chile.<ref name="Udg"/>
With the victory of [[Salvador Allende]] in the [[1970 Chilean presidential election]], Almeyda was appointed to the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs. He remained in office during almost the entire [[Popular Unity (Chile)|Popular Unity]] government, except for a period from May 1973, when he left office after being elected a member of the Political Commission of the Socialist Party; he was appointed [[Ministry of National Defense (Chile)|Minister of National Defense]] in July, but held the position for only one month before he was again appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs.<ref name="Udg"/>
=== Coup d'état === After the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|coup d'état of September 11, 1973]], which overthrew the constitutional government, Almeyda was arrested and transferred along with 99 other Popular Unity leaders and activists to [[Dawson Island]] concentration camp, where he was tortured and held under arrest for a long time. He eventually went into exile in [[Romania]], the [[German Democratic Republic]] and [[Mexico]], where he worked as a university teacher and a leader of the exiled opposition to the [[Military dictatorship of Chile|military dictatorship]] of General [[Augusto Pinochet]]. In 1979, he was elected secretary-general of the Socialist Party in exile.<ref name="Udg"/>
=== Return to Chile === In a daring maneuver, he clandestinely returned to Chile in March 1987, crossing the [[Andes]] on the back of a mule, and later appearing publicly to the surprise of the authorities of the Pinochet regime. This led to him being the only person declared unconstitutional by the [[Constitutional Court of Chile]], in use of the now defunct article 8 of the [[Chilean Constitution of 1980|Constitution of Chile]];<ref>{{Cite web|date=2006-11-30|title=Tribunal Constitucional|url=http://www.tribunalconstitucional.cl/site/roles/rol_n46.html|access-date=2020-10-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061130122336/http://www.tribunalconstitucional.cl/site/roles/rol_n46.html|archive-date=2006-11-30}}</ref> the article outlawed political parties and individuals that propagated [[Leftism|leftist]] political ideology (ideologies that promoted a doctrine "founded on [[class struggle]]"). The Constitutional Court ordered the removal of Almeyda's [[civil and political rights]] for ten years, and he would only be rehabilitated as a citizen after the end of the military dictatorship and Chile's [[Chilean transition to democracy|transition to democracy]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2007-10-08|title=Tribunal Constitucional|url=http://www.tribunalconstitucional.cl/site/roles/rol_n113.html|access-date=2020-10-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071008215311/http://www.tribunalconstitucional.cl/site/roles/rol_n113.html|archive-date=2007-10-08}}</ref> In addition to his loss of rights, Almeyda was internally exiled to the town of [[Chile Chico]] in [[Patagonia]].<ref name="Udg"/>
=== Post-dictatorship === In the years after Chile's democratic transition, Almeyda led the leftist faction of the Socialist Party, in opposition to the centrist wing led by [[Ricardo Núñez Muñoz]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Media in the Chilean Transition to Democracy: Context, Process and Evaluation (1990-2000|url=https://researchdirect.westernsydney.edu.au/islandora/object/uws%3A3652/datastream/PDF/view}}</ref> In this role, Almeyda tried to establish contacts with the [[Communist Party of Chile]] and other far-left parties, through formations such as Izquierda Unida and the short-lived [[Broad Party of Socialist Left]]. During the presidency of [[Patricio Aylwin]] he was in charge of reopening the Chilean embassy in [[Moscow]] in 1991, shortly before the fall of the [[Soviet Union]]; he served as ambassador to the Soviet Union, and then [[Russia]], until 1992. During his tenure, he gave refuge to former East German president [[Erich Honecker]], who was wanted by the authorities of reunified [[Germany]] to be tried for murder for responsibility in the shooting of people trying to cross the [[Berlin Wall]]. Despite Chile's objections, Russian president [[Boris Yeltsin]] ordered Honecker's deportation to [[Berlin]], in what turned into a serious diplomatic incident.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Honecker Remains in Chilean Ambassador's Home Despite Midnight Deadline|url=https://apnews.com/article/9717df6d4f1f0607b8b2b62c7bc5d4cf|access-date=2020-11-06|website=AP NEWS}}</ref>
After returning to Chile, Almeyda devoted himself to private life, writing his memoirs and working as an academic at the Department of Sociology at the University of Chile. Following his death, the Chilean government announced three [[National day of mourning|national days of mourning]]. He is buried in [[Santiago General Cemetery]].<ref name="Udg"/>
== Tributes == In homage to Almeyda, the Extraordinary Congress of the Socialist Party of Chile, held in May 1998, as well as its library, was named after him.<ref>{{Cite web|last=GritoGrafías|title=Clodomiro y Manuel Almeyda. La sombra de dos árboles {{!}} Gritografias en Red|url=https://gritografiasenred.org/?p=661|access-date=2020-11-07|language=en-US}}</ref>
==Honours and awards== ===Foreign honours=== {{Clear}} {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:left;" |- ! style="width:90px;" | Ribbon ! style="width:350px;" | Distinction ! style="width:120px;" | Country ! style="width:120px;" | Date ! Reference |- | [[File:PER Order of the Sun of Peru - Grand Cross BAR.png|80px]] | style="font-size:90%;" | Grand Cross of the [[Order of the Sun of Peru]] | style="font-size:90%;" | {{flag|Peru}} | style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;" | 14 September 1971 | style="font-size:90%;" | <ref>{{cite web |title=CONDECORADOS: ORDEN EL SOL DEL PERU |url=https://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/152563pdf/256576536#1 |website=Slideshare.net |publisher=[[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Peru)|Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores]] |access-date=21 July 2025 |page=46}}</ref> |- | [[File:ESP Isabella Catholic Order GC.svg|80px]] | style="font-size:90%;" | Knight Grand Cross of the [[Order of Isabella the Catholic]] | style="font-size:90%;" | {{flag|Spain}} | style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;" | 7 June 1972 | style="font-size:90%;" | <ref>{{cite web |title=Decreto 1441/1972, de 7 de junio, por el que se concede la Gran Cruz de la Orden de Isabel la Católica al señor Clodomiro Almeyda Medina. |url=https://www.boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=BOE-A-1972-41376 |website=Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado |publisher=[[Ministry of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Cortes|Ministerio de la Presidencia, Justicia y Relaciones con las Cortes]] |access-date=20 July 2025 |language=es}}</ref> |- | [[File:Order of Karl Marx ribbon bar.png|80px]] | style="font-size:90%;" | [[Order of Karl Marx]] | style="font-size:90%;" | {{flag|German Democratic Republic}} | style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;" | 11 February 1983 | style="font-size:90%;" | <ref name="DiazGonzalez">{{cite book |last1=Díaz González |first1=Francisco |title=El exilio del socialismo chileno en la RDA. La transición política del Partido Socialista de Chile y su relación con el Partido Socialista Unificado de Alemania. 1974 – 1989. |date=2019 |publisher=Freie Universität Berlin |location=Berlin |page=196 |url=https://refubium.fu-berlin.de/bitstream/handle/fub188/25187/Tesis_Francisco_D%C3%ADaz_Gonz%C3%A1lez.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y |access-date=20 July 2025 |language=es}}</ref> |- | [[File:GDR Star of Friendship of Nations - Gold BAR.png|80px]] | style="font-size:90%;" | [[Star of Peoples' Friendship|Gold Star of Peoples' Friendship]] | style="font-size:90%;" | {{flag|German Democratic Republic}} | style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;" | 11 February 1983 | style="font-size:90%;" | <ref>{{cite book |last1=Honecker |first1=Erich |author1-link=Erich Honecker |title=Reden und Aufsätze. Bd. 9. |date=1985 |publisher=Dietz Verlag |location=Berlin |page=195 |url=https://d-nb.info/850855314/04 |access-date=20 July 2025}}</ref> |- | [[File:SU Order of Friendship of Peoples ribbon.svg|80px]] | style="font-size:90%;" | [[Order of Friendship of Peoples]] | style="font-size:90%;" | {{flag|Soviet Union}} | style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;" | 10 February 1988 | style="font-size:90%;" | <ref>{{cite web |title=Указ Президиума Верховного Совета СССР О награждении тов. Клодомиро Альмейды орденом Дружбы народов |url=https://tert.nla.am/archive/NLA%20TERT/SSRM19381954/1988/7.pdf |access-date=20 July 2025 |date=1988}}</ref> |- | [[File:Order of Friendship Rib.png|80px]] | style="font-size:90%;" | [[Order of Friendship (Czechoslovakia)|Order of Friendship]] | style="font-size:90%;" | {{flag|Czechoslovakia}} | style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;" | 11 February 1988 | style="font-size:90%;" | <ref>{{cite web |title=Řád přátelství (zřízen zákonem č. 152/1976 Sb. ze dne 14. prosince 1976) |url=https://www.prazskyhradarchiv.cz/file/edee/vyznamenani/rp.pdf |publisher=Archiv Kanceláře prezidenta republiky |access-date=20 July 2025 |language=cs}}</ref> |}
=== Honorary degrees === *{{flag|Mexico}}: Honorary Degree from the [[University of Guadalajara]], 24 October 1978<ref name="Udg"/> *{{flag|German Democratic Republic}}: Honorary Degree from [[University of Rostock|Wilhelm Pieck University]], [[Rostock]], 11 February 1983<ref name="DiazGonzalez"/>
== See also == * [[UN Trade and Development III]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{start box}} {{s-off}} {{succession box | title=[[Ministry of Labor (Chile)|Minister of Labor]] | before=[[Juan Atala]] | after=[[Leandro Moreno]] | years='''1952–1953'''}} {{succession box | title=[[Ministry of Mining (Chile)|Minister of Mining]] | before=[[Rafael Tarud]] | after=[[Francisco Cuevas]] | years='''1953'''}} {{succession box | title=[[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Chile)#Ministers of Foreign Affairs (Second creation)|Minister of Foreign Affairs]] | before=[[Gabriel Valdés]] | after=[[Orlando Letelier]] | years='''1970–1973'''}} {{succession box | title=[[Ministry of National Defense (Chile)|Minister of Defense]] | before=[[José Tohá]] | after=[[Carlos Prats]] | years='''1973'''}} {{succession box | title=[[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Chile)#Ministers of Foreign Affairs (Second creation)|Minister of Foreign Affairs]] | before=[[Orlando Letelier]] | after=[[Ismael Huerta]] | years='''1973'''}} {{end box}}
{{Salvador Allende}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Almeyda, Clodomiro}} [[Category:1923 births]] [[Category:1997 deaths]] [[Category:Chilean people of Arab descent]] [[Category:Politicians from Santiago, Chile]] [[Category:Lawyers from Santiago, Chile]] [[Category:Academics from Santiago, Chile]] [[Category:Chilean political writers]] [[Category:Chilean political scientists]] [[Category:Socialist Party of Chile politicians]] [[Category:Chilean Marxists]] [[Category:Deputies of the XLIV Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile]] [[Category:Foreign ministers of Chile]] [[Category:Labour ministers of Chile]] [[Category:Ministers of mining of Chile]] [[Category:Ministers of defense of Chile]] [[Category:University of Chile alumni]] [[Category:Academic staff of the University of Chile]] [[Category:Presidency of Salvador Allende]] [[Category:Carlos Ibáñez del Campo cabinet ministers]] [[Category:Salvador Allende cabinet ministers]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Chile to Russia]] [[Category:Ambassadors of Chile to the Soviet Union]] [[Category:Grand Crosses of the Order of the Sun of Peru]] [[Category:Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic]] [[Category:Recipients of the Star of Peoples' Friendship]] [[Category:Recipients of the Order of Friendship of Peoples]] [[Category:Burials at Santiago General Cemetery]]