Luís Espinal Camps | |
---|---|
Born | |
Died | 21 March 1980
La Paz, Bolivia | (aged 48)
Nationality | Bolivian |
Other names | Lucho Espinal Lluís Espinal i Camps |
Occupation(s) | Jesuit priest, poet, journalist, filmmaker, film critic |
Years active | 1962-1980 |
Luís Espinal Camps (1932–1980), also known by the nickname "Lucho" [1] [2] and by the Catalan name Lluís Espinal i Camps, was a Spanish Jesuit priest, poet, journalist, filmmaker, and film critic.
Luís Espinal Camps was born on 2 February 1932 in Sant Fruitós de Bages, Catalonia, Spain. [1] [3] He aspired to be a priest even as a child. [4] Espinal was educated at the minor seminary of San Jose in Roquetes, Baix Ebre between 1944 and 1949. [3] He joined the Society of Jesus of Veruela, Zaragoza in 1949, made his perpetual vows in 1951, and studied Humanities and Greco-Roman Literature (1951–53) there. [3] [5] [6] He studied Philosophy at the Facultad Eclesiástica of San Cugat del Vallés from 1953 to 1956. [5] While doing another licenciate course in Philosophy at the Universidad Civil de Barcelona, Espinal gave classes of Greek literature and Latin poetry to Jesuits. [5] He studied Theology (1959–63) at the Facultad Eclesiástica of San Cugat del Vallés, [5] and was ordained priest in 1962. [3] He later obtained a degree in film and television from the Italian Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (1964–65). [3]
In 1968, Espinal moved to La Paz, Bolivia, as a missionary. [1] There, he lived alongside the families of miners during the dictatorship of Luis García Meza. [7] Becoming a human-rights activist, [8] he co-founded the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights. [1] [6] He gained Bolivian citizenship in 1970. [1]
Beyond priest and activist, Espinal was also a poet, journalist, and filmmaker. [7]
He had worked for a brief period in Spanish television. [1] In December 1967, he left Spain in protest against Francisco Franco's dictatorship censorship of him and his program channel, TVE. [5] [6] In Bolivia, he directed the social issues-themed Cuestión urgente [4] ("Urgent Issue"). In Bolivia, he directed a similar program, [4] En carne viva (lit. "In living flesh" [9]), a series of 20-minute documentaries for Televisión Boliviana (TVB). [2] The show lasted from 1970 to 1971, when Espinal was sent off from TVB because he interviewed the Ñancahuazú Guerrilla. [5]
Espinal was a film professor at the Higher University of San Andrés and the Universidad Católica Boliviana, [1] [4] and worked for Radio Fides. [1] Espinal was a film critic for the newspapers Presencia, Última hora and Aquí, [1] [2] a member of film company Ukamu, and author of ten books on cinema. [1] He was one of the most informed critics of film, television and radio in the country. [1]
In 1980, a Bolivian-government death squad murdered Espinal in La Paz. [10]
In the headquarters of the newspaper Presencia Espinal joined a December 1977 hunger strike led by Domitila Chúngara, [1] requesting amnesty for exiled labour and political leaders. [11] Espinal was killed by a right-wing paramilitary death squad in March 1980. [8] [12] He was kidnapped by the paramilitaries on 21 March and was tortured. [1] [7] His bounded and gagged body was only found by peasants the next day on the road to Chacaltaya. [1] [7] Some sources say Espinal was killed because he would publicize the cocaine traffic done by military personnel. [13] Other say that the reason was that he informed against efforts to censor a public exhibition of Jorge Sanjinés's film El coraje del pueblo, [14] a documentary that denounced the massacre of 67. [15]
Espinal's funeral on March 24 was reportedly attended by over 7,000 people in a manifestation against the regime. [1] [7] A posthumous book written by Espinal, Oraciones a quemarropa (lit. "Point-blank Prayers"), was published containing his poetic prose and prayers. [1] In his homage, the Catalonia's Society of Jesus created the Luis Espinal Camps Foundation. [1] For Espinal's contribution to cinema and human rights, Morales declared in 2007 the "Bolivian Cinema Day" to be commemorated on 21 March. [7] In 1982, Bolivian historian Carlos Mesa published the book El cine boliviano según Luis Espinal. [2] Bolivian writer Alfonso Gumucio Dagron wrote a biography of Espinal in 1985. [16] [17] The 2007 documentary Lucho: Gastar la vida por los demais, directed by Nelson Martínez, explored the life of Espinal. [18] [19]
In 1985, the song "A Luis Espinal" appeared on their debut album El Huerto by the Bolivian group Rumisonko, based in Washington, DC. [20]
In July 2015, Pope Francis visited the site where Espinal was killed. [7] Espinal gained international notoriety as the author of a crucifix that incorporated the hammer and sickle after Bolivian president Evo Morales gave a replica of it to Pope Francis. [21] The Pope said the Jesuit "preached the Gospel, the Gospel that bothered them, and because of this they got rid of him". [22] Vatican representative Frederico Lombardi said that the object stands for open dialogue and his commitment to freedom. [21] However, Espinal's friend, Xavier Albó, said it symbolised that the Church should be in dialogue with Marxism, peasants and miners. [21]
Luís Espinal Camps | |
---|---|
Born | |
Died | 21 March 1980
La Paz, Bolivia | (aged 48)
Nationality | Bolivian |
Other names | Lucho Espinal Lluís Espinal i Camps |
Occupation(s) | Jesuit priest, poet, journalist, filmmaker, film critic |
Years active | 1962-1980 |
Luís Espinal Camps (1932–1980), also known by the nickname "Lucho" [1] [2] and by the Catalan name Lluís Espinal i Camps, was a Spanish Jesuit priest, poet, journalist, filmmaker, and film critic.
Luís Espinal Camps was born on 2 February 1932 in Sant Fruitós de Bages, Catalonia, Spain. [1] [3] He aspired to be a priest even as a child. [4] Espinal was educated at the minor seminary of San Jose in Roquetes, Baix Ebre between 1944 and 1949. [3] He joined the Society of Jesus of Veruela, Zaragoza in 1949, made his perpetual vows in 1951, and studied Humanities and Greco-Roman Literature (1951–53) there. [3] [5] [6] He studied Philosophy at the Facultad Eclesiástica of San Cugat del Vallés from 1953 to 1956. [5] While doing another licenciate course in Philosophy at the Universidad Civil de Barcelona, Espinal gave classes of Greek literature and Latin poetry to Jesuits. [5] He studied Theology (1959–63) at the Facultad Eclesiástica of San Cugat del Vallés, [5] and was ordained priest in 1962. [3] He later obtained a degree in film and television from the Italian Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (1964–65). [3]
In 1968, Espinal moved to La Paz, Bolivia, as a missionary. [1] There, he lived alongside the families of miners during the dictatorship of Luis García Meza. [7] Becoming a human-rights activist, [8] he co-founded the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights. [1] [6] He gained Bolivian citizenship in 1970. [1]
Beyond priest and activist, Espinal was also a poet, journalist, and filmmaker. [7]
He had worked for a brief period in Spanish television. [1] In December 1967, he left Spain in protest against Francisco Franco's dictatorship censorship of him and his program channel, TVE. [5] [6] In Bolivia, he directed the social issues-themed Cuestión urgente [4] ("Urgent Issue"). In Bolivia, he directed a similar program, [4] En carne viva (lit. "In living flesh" [9]), a series of 20-minute documentaries for Televisión Boliviana (TVB). [2] The show lasted from 1970 to 1971, when Espinal was sent off from TVB because he interviewed the Ñancahuazú Guerrilla. [5]
Espinal was a film professor at the Higher University of San Andrés and the Universidad Católica Boliviana, [1] [4] and worked for Radio Fides. [1] Espinal was a film critic for the newspapers Presencia, Última hora and Aquí, [1] [2] a member of film company Ukamu, and author of ten books on cinema. [1] He was one of the most informed critics of film, television and radio in the country. [1]
In 1980, a Bolivian-government death squad murdered Espinal in La Paz. [10]
In the headquarters of the newspaper Presencia Espinal joined a December 1977 hunger strike led by Domitila Chúngara, [1] requesting amnesty for exiled labour and political leaders. [11] Espinal was killed by a right-wing paramilitary death squad in March 1980. [8] [12] He was kidnapped by the paramilitaries on 21 March and was tortured. [1] [7] His bounded and gagged body was only found by peasants the next day on the road to Chacaltaya. [1] [7] Some sources say Espinal was killed because he would publicize the cocaine traffic done by military personnel. [13] Other say that the reason was that he informed against efforts to censor a public exhibition of Jorge Sanjinés's film El coraje del pueblo, [14] a documentary that denounced the massacre of 67. [15]
Espinal's funeral on March 24 was reportedly attended by over 7,000 people in a manifestation against the regime. [1] [7] A posthumous book written by Espinal, Oraciones a quemarropa (lit. "Point-blank Prayers"), was published containing his poetic prose and prayers. [1] In his homage, the Catalonia's Society of Jesus created the Luis Espinal Camps Foundation. [1] For Espinal's contribution to cinema and human rights, Morales declared in 2007 the "Bolivian Cinema Day" to be commemorated on 21 March. [7] In 1982, Bolivian historian Carlos Mesa published the book El cine boliviano según Luis Espinal. [2] Bolivian writer Alfonso Gumucio Dagron wrote a biography of Espinal in 1985. [16] [17] The 2007 documentary Lucho: Gastar la vida por los demais, directed by Nelson Martínez, explored the life of Espinal. [18] [19]
In 1985, the song "A Luis Espinal" appeared on their debut album El Huerto by the Bolivian group Rumisonko, based in Washington, DC. [20]
In July 2015, Pope Francis visited the site where Espinal was killed. [7] Espinal gained international notoriety as the author of a crucifix that incorporated the hammer and sickle after Bolivian president Evo Morales gave a replica of it to Pope Francis. [21] The Pope said the Jesuit "preached the Gospel, the Gospel that bothered them, and because of this they got rid of him". [22] Vatican representative Frederico Lombardi said that the object stands for open dialogue and his commitment to freedom. [21] However, Espinal's friend, Xavier Albó, said it symbolised that the Church should be in dialogue with Marxism, peasants and miners. [21]