Secretary General of the O.A.S.
"I want to work for an OAS which integrates and will serve as a catalyst in the processes and initiatives of economic freedom and trade that are emerging in the hemisphere. I will work to make the dream of integration of Bolivar a reality, reflected initially in the creation of a grand free trade zone uniting the immense territories from Alaska to the Patagonia and which shows the world the greatness of the Americas".
"Yes, the hour of the Americas has arrived".
Current Secretary General: Cesar Gaviria
elected 1994 - 1999 (for a five year term)
Mr. Gaviria was born in Pereira, where at the age of 22, he initiated his long political career, being elected town council member. He later became Speaker of the House of Representatives, Deputy Director of the Liberal Party and Minister of the Treasury and the Interior. Prominent among his legislative initiatives are agrarian and tax reform bills which were signed into national law. On nine occasions, from 1987 to 1989, in his capacity as Minister, he was called upon to carry out the duties of acting Head of State. In 1989 he left the Ministry of the Interior to lead the debate and direct the campaign of presidential hopeful Luis Carlos Galan.
Following Galan's assassination, Mr. Gaviria was elected the official Liberal Party candidate to the presidency, winning the elections on May 27, 1990. He was the President of Colombia until August 1994. As President, Mr. Gaviria had to face several crises related to violence in his country.
A policy of opening up democratic ways to bring armed rebel groups back into civilian life led to the signing of a peace accord with four guerrilla organizations, which then became legal political organizations. Gaviria’s administration also waged a vigorous campaign against drug trafficking which inflicted such deep wounds on Colombian society. Under Mr. Gaviria’s leadership, the world’s largest narco-terrorist organization, the Medellin cartel, was dismantled and its leader, Pablo Escobar, was killed during a police operation.
Mr. Gaviria’s skills as statesman earned him a place of pre-eminence in the Latin American landscape, as conflict mediator, defender of democracy in the Hemisphere, promoter of regional integration, and human rights advocate.
