Consternation in Salto over the death of the Broad Front leader Álvaro Da Cunda

By Jesus Vargas

The afternoon in the Salta neighborhood was transformed in a matter of seconds. The black, thick and toxic smoke coming out of a precarious home on Charrúa Street put the entire neighborhood on alert. It was sheets, wood and desperation that burned in a farm that, for its inhabitants, meant everything. In the midst of the confusion and chaos that always precedes the arrival of firefighters, someone decided not to look from afar and take action. That someone was Álvaro Da Cunda.

Da Cunda was not unknown in Salto. Reference for List 770 and former secretary of the Departmental Board, his name was associated with territorial work and dialogue. But this Saturday, his commitment went beyond political offices. Upon arriving at the site of the fire, he joined the neighbors who were trying to stop the disaster. It was in the midst of that effort, under the tension and the air fouled by the flames, that his body could not resist. He suffered a severe decompensation – cardiorespiratory arrest – that would end up being fatal shortly after, in a healthcare center.

A reference for dialogue that transcends flags

The news hit hard. In Salto, a city where political distances are sometimes shortened by daily contact, Da Cunda's death generated a unanimous reaction of respect. The color of the list or the political grouping did not matter; What is gone is a man who, even in the trenches of political activism, knew how to maintain form.

Facundo Marziotte, director of Social Development of the Municipality of Salto, defined it better than anyone when remembering the time they shared on the Departmental Board. “He was a man of dialogue, good treatment and with whom we always maintained a cordial relationship, beyond the differences,” he confessed. And Da Cunda was one of those militants who understood that politics, above all, is a tool to connect with others, whether on a bench or helping a neighbor in the face of a fire.

The void in List 770

From List 770, where his activism work was constant, the message went straight to the bone: “A dear companion, a wonderful person and a great social activist is leaving.” Social networks were filled with messages from those who shared campaign days, political discussions, and the silent work of building a political force in the department with him.

For those who knew his pace of life, his death is a hard blow. Álvaro Da Cunda was always where things happened. He was not one to speculate from the comfort of an office. The image of him helping at that fire is perhaps the most honest photo of who he was: someone who got involved.

mourning jump

While firefighters try to determine what caused the fire that destroyed the property, the neighborhood tries to process what happened. The solidarity of the neighbors, which initially sought to save a house, ended up becoming the scene of an unexpected farewell.

Salto loses a leader, but above all, it loses a neighbor who understood that politics is exercised in the street, in urgency and hand in hand with the people. Álvaro Da Cunda left as he lived: trying to lend a hand. Today, his memory remains as an example of what militancy should be in its purest state: selfless, humane and always at the service of the community.