Alejandra Matus Acuña is a Chilean journalist and writer. In 1999 she published ''El libro negro de la justicia chilena'' (lit. "
The Black Book of Chilean Justice"). The available copies of the book were confiscated one day before the planned release and Matus was accused by
Servando Jordán, minister of the
Supreme Court of Chile, of the
delict
Delict (from Latin ''dēlictum'', past participle of ''dēlinquere'' ‘to be at fault, offend’) is a term in civil and mixed law jurisdictions whose exact meaning varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction but is always centered on the notion of ...
of "desacato" ("contempt") invoking the article 6-B of the
Ley de Seguridad del Estado (State Security Law). This prompted Matus to apply for—and receive—political asylum in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. The case led to the "desacato" article to be removed from the law with the new Ley de Prensa (Press Law) that was signed on May 25 of 2001 which allowed Matus to return to Chile. Despite the new law the book continued to be banned until October 2001 when the
Corte de Apelaciones (Appellate Court) removed the ban.
In 2013 she published the book ''Doña Lucía'', a biography about
Lucía Hiriart
María Lucía Hiriart Rodríguez (10 December 1923 – 16 December 2021), also known as Lucía Hiriart de Pinochet, was married to former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet.
Early life and education
Hiriart was born into a wealthy family in An ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Matus, Alejandra
Investigative journalists
Chilean women writers
Chilean biographers
Chilean journalists
Chilean exiles
Living people
1966 births
Women biographers