Cesar Gaviria served as President of Colombia from 1990 to 1994, and Secretary
General of the Organization of American States from 1994 until 2004. Gaviria
is known in Latin America as a conflict mediator, an advocate of democracy and
a staunch supporter of regional integration and defender of human rights.
After his last OAS term ended, Gaviria successfully created Hemispheric
Partners, an international business advisory firm located in New York City.
Returning to Colombia in 2005 after several visits in 2004, Gaviria once again
became active in politics and was proclaimed as the sole chief of the Colombian
Liberal Party in June 2005. He has declared that his goal is to promote the
party's reunification in order to make it a viable alternative in the upcoming
2006 presidential elections.
Born in Pereira, Gaviria has long been an important figure in Colombian
politics. He began his career at age 23, immediately after obtaining his
degree in Economics from Universidad de los Andes in Bogota, when he was
elected councilman in his hometown of Pereira. Four years later, he became
mayor. He was also professor of Principles of Economics and Public Finance at
Universidad de los Andes during 1971 and taught a seminar level course on
Colombian Economics between 1972 and 1974 at the Universidad Tecnologica de
Pereira.
In 1974 he was elected to Colombia's House of Representatives. He rose to the
top position in the House in 1983. Between 1983 and 1986 Gaviria was also
economic columist for El Tiemo, his country's leading newspaper, and director
of La Tarde, a regional paper based in his hometown.
In 1986, Gaviria became co-chair of the Colombian Liberal Party, a position he
held during the successful presidential campaign of the party's candidate,
Virgilio Barco.
Mr. Gaviria served in the Barco administration first as Minister of Finance and
later as Minister of the Interior. He played a critical role in beginning
peace negotiations with the leftist guerrilla group known as "M-19."
In early 1989 he left the government to manage the presidential campaign of
Senator Luis Carlos Galan. Following the brutal murder of Senator Galan by
drug traffickers, the Liberal Party chose Cesar Gaviria as its candidate. He
was elected President of Colombia in May 1990.
During his four-year term (1990-94), he enacted policies to strengthen
democracy, promote peace and reintegrate armed rebels into civilian life. He
also carried out a process of constitutional and institutional change, focusing
on strengthening the judiciary branch and increasing human rights protection.
In 199l, through a plebiscite and elected constitutional assembly, Colombia
drafted a new, more democratic constitution. President Gaviria also undertook
economic reforms to modernize and enhance Colombia's competitiveness in the
world market. He presided over the signing of free trade agreements between
the members of the "Group of Three" (Mexico, Colombia and Venezuela) and
between Colombia and CARICOM, and initiated the revitalization of the Andean
Pact.
Gaviria was first elected Secretary General of the Organization of American
States in 1994 (his period beginning after the end of his presidential term in
August 1994). Reelected in 1999, he worked extensively on behalf of Latin
America; between November 2002 and May 2003, he served as an honest broker in
finding a solution to the Venezuelan political crisis between President Hugo
Chavez and the opposition. The National Democratic Institute paid tribute to
Secretary General Gaviria's leadership and the Organization's growing role in
strengthening democratic values when it presented the Organization of American
States with the 2002 W. Averell Harriman Award.
Gaviria was instrumental in defusing numerous crises in the region. From
November 2002 to May 2003, he undertook an unprecedented effort to facilitate
talks between the Venezuelan government and the representatives of the
opposition. In his tenure, Gaviria also intensified efforts to improve
hemispheric security and combat terrorism, drugs and corruption. The OAS has
become a key player in the Summit of the Americas process and now serves as its
technical secretariat and institutional memory. The Organization has also
advanced the concept of integral solidarity and has reformed its technical
cooperation programs.
