José Tohá González (February 6, 1927 – March 15, 1974) was a

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

an journalist, lawyer, and politician of the

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

(PS).

Biography

Tohá was born in

Chillán Chillán () is the capital List of cities in Chile, city of Ñuble Region, Diguillín Province, Chile, located about south of the country's capital, Santiago, near the center of the country. It has been the capital of the new Ñuble Region since ...

, the son of Spanish immigrant José Tohá Soldavilla and of Brunilda González Monteagudo. After completing his secondary studies in his natal city, he studied law at the

Universidad de Chile The University of Chile () is a public research university in Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the co ...

. While there, he was president of the University of Chile Student Federation (FECh) between 1950–1951. In 1958, he joined the staff of the newspaper ''Última Hora'', and in 1960 he became its editor and majority owner, a position he held until 1970. In 1942, while still a high school student, Tohá joined the

Socialist Party of Chile The Socialist Party of Chile (, or PS) is a centre-left to Left-wing politics, left-wing political party founded in 1933. Its historic leader was President of Chile Salvador Allende, who was deposed in a 1973 Chilean coup d'état, coup d'état by ...

(PS). He rose to member of its Central Committee, and worked in all four of

Salvador Allende Salvador Guillermo Allende Gossens (26 June 1908 – 11 September 1973) was a Chilean socialist politician who served as the 28th president of Chile from 1970 until Death of Salvador Allende, his death in 1973 Chilean coup d'état, 1973. As a ...

's presidential campaigns in 1952, 1958, 1964 and 1970. As the first democratically elected socialist president, President

named Tohá his first

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

and vice president, a position he held until he was accused by Congress of tolerating the creation of left-wing

paramilitary A paramilitary is a military that is not a part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "paramilitary" as far back as 1934. Overview Though a paramilitary is, by definiti ...

organizations. Allende responded by naming him

Minister of Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

, a deliberate challenge to his right-wing detractors. As such, Tohá had to deal with the

Tanquetazo ''El Tanquetazo'' or ''El Tancazo'' (Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Span ...

putsch, the first attempt at a military-led coup d'état, on 29 June 1973. During the

coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...

of September 11, 1973, Tohá was seized and arrested at

La Moneda Palacio de La Moneda (, ''Palace of the Mint''), or simply La Moneda, is the seat of the president of the Republic of Chile. It also houses the offices of three cabinet ministers: Interior, General Secretariat of the Presidency, and General Sec ...

, where he had gone to support the defense of the democratic administration. He was held in different concentration camps suffering severe

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons including corporal punishment, punishment, forced confession, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimid ...

. After first being held at the Bernardo O'Higgins Military Academy, he was later sent for eight months to a

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

Dawson Island Dawson Island () is an island in the Strait of Magellan that forms part of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago, 100 km south of the city of Punta Arenas in Chile, and part of the Municipality of Punta Arenas. It is located southeast of Brunswi ...

. From there, he was transferred to the basement of the Air Force War Academy. On 1 February 1974, Tohá was moved to room 303 at the Military Hospital in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

in a precarious state of health, suffering from acute attack of gastric ulcers. He recovered slightly and was able to share a few minutes with his wife and children on his 47th birthday on February 6. Despite his poor health, the military officers continued harassing him with endless torture and interrogation sessions. His physical state deteriorated, his weight dropped precipitously and he lost his eyesight. He could no longer walk nor take care of himself. The further interrogations in the Air Force’s War Academy only worsened his condition. On March 15, at 12.55, he was found hanged inside the closet of his hospital room. The official explanation was that he had committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

"in the grip of a very strong nervous depression, with psycho-somatic effects". The family has never accepted that version, and claimed he was murdered. On 15 November 2010, 36 years after his death, the Court of Appeals of Santiago ordered an exhumation of Tohá's remains. A forensic study concluded that he did not commit suicide, but rather died as a result of "asphyxia due to manual strangulation of a homicidal nature". On 4 December 2015, Ramón Cáceres Jorquera and Sergio Contreras Mejías, two retired colonels of the

Chilean Air Force The Chilean Air Force () is the air force of Chile and branch of the Chilean military. History The first step towards the current FACh is taken by Lieutenant Colonel, Teniente Coronel training as a pilot in France. Although a local academy was c ...

, were found responsible for the torture of Tohá and sentenced to three years in prison. After his death, his wife and children lived in exile in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

for several years. His family returned to Chile in the early 80's, where his wife worked in the resistance to the

Augusto Pinochet Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean military officer and politician who was the dictator of Military dictatorship of Chile, Chile from 1973 to 1990. From 1973 to 1981, he was the leader ...

's military dictatorship.

Personal life

Tohá married Raquel Victoria Morales Etchevers (also known as Moy de Tohá) in 1963.

References

External links

Biographical sketch

Memorial to José Tohá
with information on his prison time.

Information on the judicial investigation about his death

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toha, Jose 1927 births 1974 deaths People from Chillán Chilean people of Spanish descent Presidents of the University of Chile Student Federation Socialist Party of Chile politicians Chilean lawyers Chilean journalists Chilean socialists Presidency of Salvador Allende Ministers of the interior of Chile Ministers of defense of Chile Chilean torture victims Chilean people who died in prison custody Prisoners who died in Chilean detention Assassinated Chilean politicians South American politicians assassinated in the 1970s Politicians assassinated in 1974 University of Chile alumni