Juan Pradenas
Juan Pradenas | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Senate | |
| In office 15 May 1933 – 15 May 1941 | |
| Constituency | 4th Provincial Grouping |
| Member of the Chamber of Deputies | |
| In office 15 May 1930 – 6 June 1932 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Juan Pradenas Muñoz 13 February 1890 Lebu, Chile |
| Died | 9 October 1966 (aged 76) Santiago, Chile |
| Party | Democratic Party |
| Spouse | Blanca Zuniga |
| Children | 5 |
| Occupation | |
Juan Pradenas Muñoz (13 February 1890 – 9 October 1966) was a Chilean politician and journalist. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a senator of the Republic representing the Fourth Provincial Grouping of Santiago during the 1933–1941 legislative period.[1]
Biography
He was born in Lebu on 13 February 1890, the son of Fermin Pradenas and Rosario Munoz. He married Blanca Zuniga, and they had five children: Juan Lenin, Luis Enrique, Blanca Amelia, Fernando and Enrique.[1]
Professional career
He studied at the Liceo de Lebu. He began his working activities in Talcahuano, where he published the newspaper Adelante, and later in Lota, where he founded the newspaper La Region Minera. Both publications were aimed at defending the rights of workers in the coal-mining zone.[1]
He was one of the initiators of the First Mining Congress, held in Coronel in September 1920, together with his party colleague Juan Vargas Marquez. The congress brought together miners from the Concepcion coal basin.[1]
In July 1924, he was appointed counselor of the State Railways, representing the Executive.[1]
Political career
He was a member of the Democratic Party, serving as vice president of its board in 1925 and as one of its founders. At the party convention held on 20 November 1931, he was elected president of the party, a position he held for ten years. He was designated the Democratic Party candidate for President of the Republic on 16 July 1950.[1]
He was elected deputy for the Lautaro electoral district for the 1921–1924 term, serving on the Standing Committee on Social Legislation and as alternate deputy on the Standing Committee on Internal Police. He also served on the Conservative Commission during the 1922–1923 recess.[1]
He was elected deputy for Santiago for the 1924–1927 term, presiding over the Standing Committee on Social Legislation. On 11 September 1924, the National Congress was dissolved by decree of the Junta of Government.[1]
He was later elected deputy for the Second Departmental Circumscription of Tocopilla, El Loa, Antofagasta and Taltal for the 1930–1934 term. He served as alternate deputy on the Standing Committees on Internal Government and Finance and as a member of the Standing Committee on Labor and Social Welfare. The revolutionary movement of 4 June 1932 led to the dissolution of this Congress on 6 June.[1]
He was elected senator for the Fourth Provincial Grouping of Santiago for the 1933–1941 term and served as Vice President of the Senate from 22 May to 11 July 1934. He served on the Standing Committees on Finance, Trade and Municipal Loans and on Labor and Social Welfare, the latter of which he chaired. He later continued serving on the Standing Committee on Finance and Budget under its new name. On 11 June 1940, he was appointed Minister of State and was replaced in the Senate by Máximo Venegas Sepúlveda.[1]
He was appointed Minister of Labor under President Pedro Aguirre Cerda, serving from 12 March 1940 to 2 April 1942, with brief intervals of substitution. He was again appointed Minister of Labor by President Gabriel Gonzalez Videla, serving from 14 January to 23 October 1947.[1]
Diplomatic and international roles
He served as delegate to the Assembly of Nations and to the International Labour Conference held in Canada in 1941, where he was elected president of the international delegates. He later served as Consul General of Chile in the State of California on two occasions until 1953, as Consul General in Mexico City in 1954 and 1955, and as Consul of Chile in Los Angeles in 1953. He also served as president of the Federation of Consuls and as president of the Provincial Board of the Chilean Workers Federation.[1]
Death
He died in Santiago on 9 October 1966.[1]