David Noriega Rodríguez (April 10, 1945 – May 4, 2013) was a Puerto Rican lawyer, politician, and political analyst. He was one of the most relevant political figures in Puerto Rico during the last two decades of the 20th century, when he was a member of the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP). Noriega ran for

Governor of Puerto Rico The governor of Puerto Rico ( es, gobernador de Puerto Rico) is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and commander-in-chief of the Puerto Rico National Guard. The governor has a duty ...

at the

1996 general elections File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

. Noriega became known as the "People's Prosecutor" because of his active role in pursuing government corruption. His legislative investigations led to the discovery of many political corruption scandals that he referred to the US Federal Government. In later years, Noriega served as a political analyst for various television and news programs.

Early years and studies

David Noriega Rodríguez was born in 1945. His father was Elías Noriega Martínez. Noriega studied political science at the University of Puerto Rico. He then completed a degree in law.

Political career

Noriega's political career began in the late 1960s, after being elected as president of the General Council of the University of Puerto Rico in the year 1967. He was also Secretary of the Youth of the PIP in 1968. Two years later, he was elected as Secretary of the party. In 1979, Noriega also served as Secretary of Legislative Affairs for the PIP, and in 1980 served as Electoral Commissioner. Noriega was first elected to the House of Representatives at the 1984 general elections, and was reelected for two additional terms in

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

and

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

. In all elections, he was the candidate with the most votes from all parties. As a member of the House of Representatives, Noriega was instrumental in exposing the corruption scandal in the AIDS Institute of San Juan. Noriega was the gubernatorial candidate of the PIP in the

. He received 3.8% of the votes. Because of differences with the leadership of the PIP, he resigned from the party in the late 1990s. Noriega was one of the voices that promoted

abstention Abstention is a term in election procedure for when a participant in a vote either does not go to vote (on election day) or, in parliamentary procedure, is present during the vote, but does not cast a ballot. Abstention must be contrasted with ...

for the 1998 status referendum. This, despite the fact that the PIP gave his full support to a direct vote in favor of independence.

Fight against corruption

During the late 1990s, Noriega became renowned for his work in the famous case of the " carpetas". The "carpetas" were secret dossiers on independence supporters that were maintained by local police with help from federal authorities. These dossiers were used as instruments of persecution against those who sought political independence for the island. Noriega was one of the plaintiffs in the case held against the Government of Puerto Rico. The lawsuit led to the opening of the files and passage of legislation banning such ideological persecution. In the first years of the 2000s, Noriega was named by Governor

Sila María Calderón Serra Sila may refer to : Places and jurisdictions ; Asia * Silla, one of the three kingdoms of ancient Korea * Sila, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates ; Europe * La Sila, a mountainous area of Calabria, Italy ** Sila National Park * Siła, Warmian-Ma ...

(of the Popular Democratic Party) to head the "Comisión Independiente de Ciudadanos para Evaluar Transacciones Gubernamentales", also called as the Blue-Ribbon Commission, to investigate government corruption.

Later years

Noriega later returned to his practice of law, and also served as a political analyst in Puerto Rican radio and news programs. During his last years, Noriega was one of the founders of the

Movimiento Unión Soberanista (MUS) (English: Sovereign Union Movement) was a Puerto Rican political party. The party was founded in October 2010 in the city of Caguas, Puerto Rico. Certification On March 20, 2012, the Puerto Rico State Commission on Elections (CEE) cert ...

, a new party promoting the sovereignty of Puerto Rico. He also served as member of the board of directors of the party which participated in the 2012 general elections.

Personal life

Noriega was married to Carmencita Costas. They had three children together: Rebeca, David, and Javier.

Illness and death

On March 26, 2013, Noriega confirmed that he was suffering from cancer, and was undergoing treatment for it. He died of

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of t ...

in the morning of May 4, 2013. As a result, Governor Alejandro García Padilla declared two days of mourning.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Noriega Rodriguez, David 1945 births 2013 deaths Deaths from cancer in Puerto Rico Deaths from pancreatic cancer Members of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Independence Party politicians Leaders of political parties Puerto Rican party leaders Puerto Rican independence activists