Probably the name of Yamile Cabrera Cuevas is not so familiar to most of the sisters of the Congregation, but some of them have shared their life with this woman that, during 30 years, has been a member of our Religious Family. She was born in Chile and received her formation in Colombia where she lived for many years; she also worked for a time in Africa, concretely in Benin.
Yamile, at the end of a long discernment, carried out through different stages, has finally decided to leave the Congregation. It is not usual to inform publically that a sister took this kind of decision, but the interviews she gave in Chile about her situation have been published in the press and in the social networks, so we also, through our webpage, like to say some words about that.
Since the year 2010, being still a member of the Congregation and having been granted the canonical permissions, Yamile began to work in the Mayor’s Office of Quilicura (Chile), a marginalized area of Santiago, she committed to the responsibilities related to her service. One of her most important tasks in the institution was the constitution of the Office of Migrants and Refugees. After seven years dedicated to work with the migrants, she began to lead the Human Rights Department and, later, the Women’s Department (See: Meganoticias.cl).
However, after all this engagement in the social service in the Mayor’s Office, Yamile decides to take a new step, presenting herself as an independent candidate to lead it. In fact, on January 8, 2021, she and her team, having already gathered the requested signatures, presented herself at the offices of the Electoral Service (Servel) in order to register her candidacy.
Some sisters and lay people knowing Yamile and aware that a religious must not assume public offices which entail a participation in the exercise of civil power (CIC 285), they were quite surprised by the news about that and, without knowing her real situation within the Congregation, approached to the General superior asking her for clarifications that would help them to understand what was happening. Because of that, and since, as we have already mentioned, the networks continue publishing news about this issue, we from the General Curie, consider important and necessary to publically inform about this matter.
In 2017, Yamile applied the required authorization to begin a probation period in a Secular Institute and was granted it for three years but a few months ago she applied for the definitive exemption of her Vows in the Church and the indult of definitive departure from the Congregation of Capuchin Tertiary Sisters of the Holy Family, in order to commit herself to the political activity and so she made a different option of service to others. We wish her all the best for this new experience.