Laura Tarita Rapu Alarcón (born Laura Tarita Alarcón Rapu, 2 March 1977) is a

Rapa Nui Easter Island (, ; , ) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is renowned for its nearly 1,000 extant monumental statues, ...

Chilean politician who served as governor of

Isla de Pascua Province Isla de Pascua Province (Easter Island Province) is a Chilean province, an administrative division located within the Valparaíso Region. It has a 163.6 km² area and a population of 5761 inhabitants. The provincial capital is Hanga Ro ...

from 2018 until her resignation in April 2021.

Biography

She was born in

Easter Island Easter Island (, ; , ) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is renowned for its nearly 1,000 extant monumental statues, ...

in 1977 to parents Arturo Orando Alarcón Espinoza and María Hortencia Rapu Tuki. Her cousin, Camilo Rapu Riroroko, is President of the ''Ma'u Henua'' Indigenous Community and her uncle,

Lynn Rapu Tuki Lynn Jaime Rapu Tuki (born 9 December 1969) is a Chilean promoter of the arts and traditions of the Rapa Nui People and head-teacher and founder of the Ma'aranui Cultural Academy and the Cultural Ballet Kari Kari. He is Cultural Ambassador of As ...

, is head-teacher and founder of the ''Ma'aranui'' Cultural Academy. Laura Rapu, then known as Laura Alarcón Rapu, gained fame during the late 1980s in Chilean media, when she sang her original song "Iorana Presidente" (Hello President), which had both Spanish and Rapa Nui lyrics, during a visit from military dictator

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 ...

, which was later used an anthem for the pro-Pinochet campaign of the

1988 Chilean national plebiscite A referendum on whether Augusto Pinochet, the head of a Military dictatorship of Chile (1973–90), military dictatorship, should become president for eight years under resumed civilian rule was held in Chile on 5 October 1988. The "No" side won ...

. Later on, she stated that she does not sympathize to Pinochet's government or policies and was simply honoring the visit from a president, as the island did not usually get such important visitors. She earned a degree in anthropology and until 2018 was member of the

Valparaíso Region The Valparaíso Region (, ) is one of Chile's 16 Regions of Chile, first order administrative divisions.Valparaíso Region, 2006 With the country's second-highest population of 1,790,219 , and fourth-smallest area of , the region is Chile's sec ...

Council for the

during two tenures. On 5 March 2018, being a defender of Rapa Nui traditions, culture, heritage and language, she was appointed by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Sebastián Piñera Miguel Juan Sebastián Piñera Echenique (; 1 December 1949 – 6 February 2024) was a Chilean businessman and politician who served as President of Chile from 2010 to 2014 and again from 2018 to 2022. The son of a Christian Democratic Party (C ...

as the new governor of the Island, succeeding

Melania Hotu Melania Carolina Hotu Hey (born 8 February 1959) is a Rapa Nui Chilean politician. She has served as the provincial governor of Isla de Pascua Province (Easter Island, known locally as ''Rapa Nui''), in Chilean Polynesia, in the first and second ...

. She worked in the ''Te Hokinga Mai'' project, consisting of the return of local heritage that was abroad. Following

Spanish naming customs Spanish names are the traditional way of identifying, and the official way of registering a person in Spain. They are composed of a given name (simple or composite) and two surnames (the first surname of each parent). Traditionally, the first ...

, at birth her paternal surname was Alarcón (of Spanish origin) and her maternal surname was Rapu (of Polynesian Rapa Nui origin). However, she has since legally changed the order of her surnames for more emphasis on her Rapa Nui ancestry.

References

1977 births Living people Chilean people of Rapanui descent Easter Island people Governors of Isla de Pascua Province Rapa Nui politicians Indigenous people of South America Independent politicians in Chile Women governors of provinces of Chile {{Indigenous-activist-stub