Memorial Población La Legua, Human rights memorial in San Joaquín, Chile.
Memorial Población La Legua is a monument in San Joaquín consisting of two concrete human figures over five meters tall. These structures are decorated with mosaic tiles and memorial plaques installed in Plaza Salvador Allende.
The monument commemorates 76 victims from the La Legua neighborhood who died during the military uprising of September 11, 1973. Construction of the monument began following the installation of the first memorial stone in 1990 and was carried out with support from the local community.
The bronze plaque on the central figure is titled "Al Presidente Salvador Allende… a los héroes y mártires del pueblo" and lists 76 names alphabetically by surname, grouped by year from 1973 to 1986. A stone set into the concrete in 1990 carries the inscription "A los héroes y mártires del pueblo" and verses from Pablo Neruda's Canto General. The Chilean group Illapu, which recorded the poem in 1981, took part in the memorial's inauguration in 2006.
The memorial sits at the intersection of Alcalde Pedro Alarcón, Los Copihues, Pasaje Antártica, and Comandante Riesle in the San Joaquín district. The site is publicly accessible and offers an open space for visiting and reflection.
The memorial was promoted by the Comisión por los Derechos Humanos de San Joaquín, formed around 2003 by the Salamanca family of La Legua, whose parents had wanted a large commemorative work in the plaza since the early 1990s. The monument was inaugurated in 2006, and the group Illapu, which had recorded a sung version of Neruda's poem in 1981, took part in the ceremony.
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