Alfonso López Michelsen

Alfonso López Michelsen (born the June 30th 1913 with Bogotá in Colombia and dead the July 11th 2007 also in Bogota), is a politician and Colombian lawyer. President of the Republic of Colombia of 1974 with 1978.

Biography

Wire of the former liberal president Alfonso López Pumarejo and of María Michelsen, Alfonso López Michelsen followed its first studies to the modern College of Bogotá. It then left to study in Europe, initially with the Saint-Michel college of Brussels, then with the French College of London and finally in France, with Lille, where it obtains its diploma of the baccalaureat. It receives then the title of lawyer to the College Nuestra Señora del Rosario, with a thesis on “the registered possession”. It specializes then, at the University of Santiago of Chile in “Código Bello”, then with the Georgetown university, Washington, in Public law and Constitutional. It completes its studies in 1938 by receiving the title of doctor in jurisprudence of the College del Rosario, with a thesis on “the possession in Código de Bello”.

The September 23rd 1938, it Marie with Cecilia Caballero Blanco, with which he will have three wire: Alfonso, Manual Juan and Felipe.

This same year, it obtains its first public office while being elected city council man of Engativá, at the same time as Alvaro Gómez Hurtado and Julio César Turbay Ayala (which will succeed to him the presidency in 1978). Its wire condition of a former president of the Republic will be an obstacle with its political career, because its interventions in the Colombian policy will be always marked seal of contradiction.

Obliged to keep away from the policy, it obtains the pulpit of Constitutional Law in the universities Nationale, Libre and with the College del Rosario.

In September 1952, the house of his/her father with Bogotá is burnt. It must be exiled, like all its family with the Mexico, where it will live eight years. During this period, he wrote a “Introduction to the study of the Constitution of Colombia”, “the origins calvinists of our institutions”, as well as a novel “the Elected officials”, published in Mexico by the Guaranía editions in 1953, on the capacity which exerts a privileged class in the government of a country and the consequences of this domination. The novel was carried to the screen in a coproduction soviéto-Colombian.

On its return in Colombia in 1960, López Michelsen founds “Movimiento Revolucionario Liberal” (MRL), like the expression of a revolt and in order to protect liberalism from the risks which the restoration of the bipartisanism in the capacity implies. This same year, for its first appearance like political party, the MRL obtains 354.560 votes at the time of the elections to the Room of the Representatives, and López is elected in the district of Cundinamarca, over the period 1960-1962. In 1962, although constitutionally the turn returned to a conservative candidate, López Michelsen stood as a candidate to the presidency of the Republic, but it is Guillermo Leon Valencia which was elected. This type of attitude involved serious dissensions in the liberal camp.

After having carried out the reunification of the liberals, during the government of Carlos Lleras Restrepo, López Michelsen acepta to be the first governor of new the Department of Cesar, between 1967 and 1968. He will be then Minister for the Foreign relations between 1968 and 1970, period which saw the creation of the Andean regional Group and the study of the reforms to bring to the Constitution United Nations (UNO). Its presence in a government of National front was very significant, whereas he had been opposed to the policy of alternation to the capacity.

In 1973, its name was proposed with Liberal Convention to be regarded as a potential candidate with the Presidency of the Republic for the period 1974 - 1978.

At the end of conflict with Carlos Lleras Restrepo, which wished to obtain its re-election, which López left victorious, it was elected by Convention like official candidate. Vis-a-vis the conservative candidate Alvaro Gómez Hurtado, he is elected president of the Republic with 2.929.719 votes. In its speech of nomination, the August 7th 1974, it promises with the country to reduce the fracture between the country population and that of the cities, to work to improve the situation of poorest and to promote the change. It was the main theme of its electoral campaign, which it called the “clear mandate”.

During its administration, López Michelsen issued the economic urgency to correct the budget deficit, founding a strict control of the expenditure of the decentralized institutions, deciding the elimination of the subsidies and the reduction of the Tributary certificate of Subscription (CAT). It carried out an important tax reform and created a tax on the exceptional profits. The public investment increased by 61% and exports were increased. In spite of measurements taken to limit inflation, this one reached the highest rate of the history of the country. In addition, López sought to improve the living conditions of the peasants, by reinforcing the internal conditions of the agricultural economics to maintain this population in her medium, which caused to involve an increase of 16% of the agricultural production.

In 1982, it hopes to be again elected with the Presidency of the Republic, after being officially declared candidate at the Convention of Medellín in September 1981, but it is beaten by the conservative candidate Belisario Betancur Cuartas. In spite of this defeat, it did not give up its political activity and continued to intervene in the Colombian policy as chief of the liberal camp.

In the last years of its life, it was very implied in the search for an humanitarian agreement with the guerillas of the Revolutionary armed forces of Colombia (FARC-Marxist).

Random links: