Gonzalo Arenas appointed as Chile's new Government Spokesperson

Chilean President José Antonio Kast has appointed lawyer and historian Gonzalo Arenas Hödar as the new Undersecretary of the General Secretariat of Government (Segegob) and official government spokesperson. Arenas replaces José Francisco Lagos, who resigned from the position but will continue to collaborate with the President on various matters.

The appointment is part of a strategic communication restructuring led by Interior and Segegob Biminister Claudio Alvarado and Presidential Communications Director Cristian Valenzuela. The new design implements a weekly information schedule consisting of a general spokesperson briefing, a sectoral intervention, and a final management balance.

In his first appearance, Arenas addressed recent controversies, including the Ministry of Justice's decision to reduce sentences for 56 individuals convicted of sexual abuse. He clarified that the Ministry was following Supreme Court doctrine established via habeas corpus rulings for crimes committed prior to 2022 legal changes, stating the government must comply with judicial sentences.