Chilean President to visit Victoria University
The President of Chile, His Excellency Ricardo Lagos, is to visit Victoria University tomorrow (May 4) to give an
address on the relationship between New Zealand and Chile and to witness the signing of two agreements.
President Lagos, accompanied by his wife, Luisa Durán de Lagos, will address an invited gathering in the University’s
Hunter Council Chamber on Chile and New Zealand: A Partnership of Knowledge and Innovation at 10am.
Elected in the year 2000, President Lagos was a distinguished academic before entering politics. A leading dissident
figure in Chile in the 1980s, he was jailed by the Government in 1987 but served as Minister of Education and of Public
Works after democracy was restored in 1990.
Also attending the lecture will be: His Excellency Carlos Appelgren, Chilean Ambassador to New Zealand; the Hon Pete
Hodgson, Minister of Research, Science and Technology; the Hon Steve Maharey, Associate Minister of Education (Tertiary
Education); Dr Eric Goles, President of the Chilean National Commission of Science & Technology; Dr Alex Malahoff, Chief Executive of the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences; and from Victoria
University, Rosemary Barrington, Chancellor; and Professor Stuart McCutcheon, Vice-Chancellor.
After the address, Dr Goles and Professor McCutcheon will sign an agreement of co-operation between the two
organisations to provide PhD scholarships allowing Chilean students to study at Victoria University. Dr Goles will also
sign an agreement with Dr Malahoff to forge greater links between the two organisations. Professor McCutcheon said the
University was honoured that President Lagos had agreed to give the address.
"President Lagos has made a significant contribution in Chile, both in academia and in politics. As the Capital City
University, Victoria has a strong relationship with the diplomatic corps. Ambassador Appelgren has been a welcome
visitor to our campus, supporting a series of talks given by members of the diplomatic corps and the work of the Spanish
programme in our School of Asian & European Languages and Cultures.
"The agreement is one of a number we have with universities and organisations around the world and reflects the standing
of Victoria University of Wellington as an internationally distinguished research institution ranked amongst this
nation’s finest."