Chilean writer Pedro Lemebel dies

Santiago, Jan 23 (IANS/EFE) Chilean writer Pedro Lemebel, who looked at his country from a gay, non-conformist point of view, died Friday of cancer at a Santiago clinic, those close to him said. He was 62.

The winner of the Jose Donoso Ibero-American Letters Prize in 2013 for his works such as "Loco Afan" (1996), "De Perlas y Cicatrices" (1998) and "Tengo Miedo Torero" (2001), among others, had suffered from the disease for several years.

He was awarded the Jose Donoso Prize in 2013 "for his assertiveness in showing the complexity of Chilean society," the jury said.

"He was a tireless creator," said President Michelle Bachelet, who described Lemebel as "a social fighter and defender of freedom, who represented the marginalised and the forgotten."

The president said that several days before she had the chance to bid the writer farewell, she was pleased that democracy has progressed toward some of the goals for which Lemebel fought.

The writer was born in 1952 in Santiago.

--IANS/EFE

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