{{Short description|Chilean politician and senator (1898–1977)}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Pedro Opitz Velásquez | image = | caption = | birth_date = {{Birth date|df=y|1898|5|7}} | birth_place = Río Bueno, Chile | death_date = {{Death date and age|df=y|1977|4|20|1898|5|7}} | death_place = Santiago, Chile | office = Member of the Senate | constituency = Tarapacá and Antofagasta | term_start = 21 May 1945 | term_end = 15 May 1953 | office1 = Member of the Chamber of Deputies | constituency1 = Tocopilla, El Loa, Antofagasta and Taltal | term_start1 = 21 May 1933 | term_end1 = 15 May 1945 | party = Radical Party | profession = Lawyer | spouse = María Teresa de la Barra }}
'''Pedro Opitz Velásquez''' (7 May 1898 – 20 April 1977) was a Chilean lawyer and politician affiliated with the Radical Party. He served as a member of the Chamber of Deputies between 1933 and 1945, and as Senator of the Republic for Tarapacá and Antofagasta from 1945 to 1953.<ref name="BCN">{{Cite web |url=https://www.bcn.cl/historiapolitica/resenas_parlamentarias/wiki/Pedro_Opitz_Velásquez |title=Pedro Opitz Velásquez – BCN Parliamentary Biography |publisher=Library of the National Congress of Chile |access-date=21 December 2025}}</ref>
== Biography == Opitz Velásquez was born in Río Bueno on 7 May 1898, the son of José Opitz and Griselda Velásquez.<ref name="BCN"/>
He married María Teresa de la Barra Muñoz.<ref name="BCN"/>
== Education and professional career == He completed his primary and secondary education at the German School of Río Bueno, the Salesian Commercial Institute, the Liceo Fiscal of Valdivia, and the Internado Nacional Barros Arana in Santiago. He later studied law at the University of Chile, qualifying as a lawyer in 1921. His undergraduate thesis was titled ''La constitución de la personalidad natural ante nuestro Derecho Civil''.<ref name="BCN"/>
He served as inspector of the Internado Nacional Barros Arana and as secretary of the Intendencies of Chiloé (1926), Colchagua (1927–1928), O'Higgins (1928–1929) and Antofagasta (1929–1932).<ref name="BCN"/>
== Political career == A long-standing member of the Radical Party, Opitz Velásquez rose to the position of Secretary-General of the party's National Board.<ref name="BCN"/>
He was elected Deputy for Tocopilla, El Loa, Antofagasta and Taltal for the 1933–1937 term, serving on the Standing Committee on Government Interior and as a member of the Radical Parliamentary Committee. He was re-elected in 1937 and again in 1941, participating in the Special Committee on Agricultural Exports, the Joint Budget Committee, and the Standing Committees on Foreign Relations, Finance, Economy and Commerce.<ref name="BCN"/>
In 1940, he served as president of the National Airline of Chile (LAN).<ref name="BCN"/>
He was elected Senator of the Republic for Tarapacá and Antofagasta for the 1945–1953 term. During his tenure, he served on the Standing Committees on Foreign Relations; Constitution, Legislation and Justice; and Labour and Social Welfare.<ref name="BCN"/>
== Other activities == He was a founder of the Industrial Mining Development Institute of Tarapacá and Antofagasta, and served as director of Cemento ''El Melón'', the Society of Mines and Fertilizers, the Río Negro Coal Company, and the Marble Exploitation Company of Calama.<ref name="BCN"/>
== Death == Pedro Opitz Velásquez died in Santiago on 20 April 1977, at the age of 78.<ref name="BCN"/>
== References == {{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Opitz Velásquez, Pedro}} Category:1898 births Category:1977 deaths Category:University of Chile alumni Category:20th-century Chilean lawyers Category:Radical Party of Chile politicians Category:Deputies of the XXXVII Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile Category:Deputies of the XXXVIII Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile Category:Deputies of the XXXIX Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile Category:Senators of the XL Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile Category:Senators of the XLI Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile