Martita Worner

Martita Elvira Worner Tapia (born 18 January 1947) is a Chilean politician who served as a deputy in district 46 in the Biobío Region from 1994 to 1998. She worked as a human rights lawyer during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.

Biography She was born on 18 January 1947 in Curacautín, the daughter of Carlos Wörner and Dora Tapia. She has two children.

She completed her primary and secondary education at the public school of Curacautín and at Colegio Santa Elena of the same city. Her family later moved to Concepción, where she attended the Instituto Comercial and qualified as an accountant. She subsequently studied Law at the University of Concepción and was admitted as a lawyer before the Supreme Court of Chile on 27 October 1975.

She began working in 1971, while in her fourth year of Law, at a private bank as executive secretary. In 1977, she resigned to join the Vicariate of Solidarity, which in Concepción operated through the Social Service of the Archdiocese, where she worked until March 1990. She devoted herself to the Human Rights Pastoral of the Archdiocese of Concepción and Arauco, becoming its Executive Director.

Political career She created and promoted a civic education program during the 1988 plebiscite. She later presided over the campaign command for the “No” option and subsequently over the professionals’ command supporting the presidential candidacy of Patricio Aylwin.

After the plebiscite, she joined the Party for Democracy. On 11 March 1990, she was appointed Undersecretary of Justice in the government of President Patricio Aylwin, serving until 1 July 1993.

After resigning from that position on 1 July 1993, she ran for the Chamber of Deputies for District No. 46, Biobío Region. In the parliamentary elections held on 11 December 1993, she obtained the highest district majority with 39,059 votes (41.45% of valid votes).

After not being elected in the 1997 parliamentary elections, she settled in Ancud, where she has served as Notary and Conservator since 26 March 1999.