Virgilio Barco Vargas
Encyclopedia
Virgilio Barco Vargas was a politician and diplomat from Colombia
. He was a member of the Colombian Liberal Party
and served as president of Colombia
from August 7, 1986 until August 7, 1990.
Barco was born in Cúcuta
, Norte de Santander Department, in north-eastern Colombia. Graduated of Civil Engineer from Massachusetts Institute of Technology
in 1958, He entered politics in 1943 when he became a city council member in the town of Durania for the Liberal Party. He was then elected to the lower house of Congress, but went into exile in the late 1940s because of violence between liberals and conservatives. He lived in the United States, where his daughter, Carolina Barco (who would later become a Colombian politician herself) was born.
Barco returned to Colombia in 1954 to help negotiate the peace process which allowed the formation of the National Front between liberals and conservatives, which lasted two decades. He became a member of the Senate, the upper house of Congress in 1958, left to become the ambassador to Britain in 1961, and returned to Colombia in 1962. He served another term in the Senate until 1966, when he was elected mayor
of Colombia's capital, Bogotá
. He served in that position until 1969, when he became a director of the World Bank
until 1974. He then briefly served as ambassador to the United States during 1977.
Barco was elected president
of Colombia with 58% of the vote in 1986. He supported anti-poverty programs, renewed dialogue with leftist guerillas and fought drug traffickers. Though he was popular within the international community, he became less popular in Colombia because the drug traffickers became more violent after he started to move against them. His restrictive economic policies at first doomed the country. After two years of this, The Economic Openness program was initiated by his administration, which would open Colombian markets to the world and recharge the country's economy. He served one 4-year term. When he left the Presidency in 1990, he served as ambassador to Britain again until 1992, when he retired from public life. He died in Bogotá on May 20, 1997.
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
. He was a member of the Colombian Liberal Party
Colombian Liberal Party
The Colombian Liberal Party is a center-left party in Colombia that adheres to social democracy and social liberalism.The Party was founded in 1848 and, together with the Colombian Conservative Party, subsequently became one of the two main political forces in the country for over a century.After...
and served as president of Colombia
President of Colombia
The President of Colombia is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Colombia. The office of president was established upon the ratification of the Constitution of 1819, by the Congress of Angostura, convened in December 1819, when Colombia was part of "la Gran Colombia"...
from August 7, 1986 until August 7, 1990.
Barco was born in Cúcuta
Cúcuta
Cúcuta is a Colombian city, capital of Norte de Santander, in the northeast of the country. Due to its proximity to the Colombian-Venezuelan border, Cúcuta is an important commercial center. The city has the constitutional category of Special District. It is located at the most active...
, Norte de Santander Department, in north-eastern Colombia. Graduated of Civil Engineer from Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
in 1958, He entered politics in 1943 when he became a city council member in the town of Durania for the Liberal Party. He was then elected to the lower house of Congress, but went into exile in the late 1940s because of violence between liberals and conservatives. He lived in the United States, where his daughter, Carolina Barco (who would later become a Colombian politician herself) was born.
Barco returned to Colombia in 1954 to help negotiate the peace process which allowed the formation of the National Front between liberals and conservatives, which lasted two decades. He became a member of the Senate, the upper house of Congress in 1958, left to become the ambassador to Britain in 1961, and returned to Colombia in 1962. He served another term in the Senate until 1966, when he was elected mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of Colombia's capital, Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
. He served in that position until 1969, when he became a director of the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
until 1974. He then briefly served as ambassador to the United States during 1977.
Barco was elected president
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
of Colombia with 58% of the vote in 1986. He supported anti-poverty programs, renewed dialogue with leftist guerillas and fought drug traffickers. Though he was popular within the international community, he became less popular in Colombia because the drug traffickers became more violent after he started to move against them. His restrictive economic policies at first doomed the country. After two years of this, The Economic Openness program was initiated by his administration, which would open Colombian markets to the world and recharge the country's economy. He served one 4-year term. When he left the Presidency in 1990, he served as ambassador to Britain again until 1992, when he retired from public life. He died in Bogotá on May 20, 1997.
Personal life
- His daughter, Carolina has served as Colombian Minister of Foreign AffairsMinistry of Foreign Affairs (Colombia)The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also known as the Chancellery, is the national executive ministry of the Government of Colombia responsible for the foreign relations of Colombia through its diplomatic missions abroad by formulating foreign policy relevant to the matters of the State, it is...
and as Ambassador of Colombia to the United States. - His son, also named VirgilioVirgilio Barco IsaksonVirgilio Barco Isakson is a Colombian economist, son of former President of Colombia Virgilio Barco Vargas. An openly out gay man, Barco has been a LGBT rights activist fighting for LGBT rights in Colombia and is the co-founder of Colombia Diversa, a NGO that advocates for legal and political...
, is founder of Colombia Diversa, a Colombian movement for LGBTLGBTLGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
rights. - Barco's biography in "Un Barco Liberal" by Edgar C. OtálvoraEdgar C. OtálvoraEdgar C. Otálvora is a Venezuelan intellectual, journalist, and politician who has held government and diplomatic positions...
ASIN B00507QJYE