Alfonso Valdivieso Sarmiento

Alfonso Valdivieso Sarmiento (born 2 October 1949)[1] is a Colombian lawyer and politician.

Alfonso Valdivieso Sarmiento
Senator of Colombia
In office 20 July 2008 – 20 July 2010
In office 20 July 1986 – 1 February 1992
24th Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations
In office 18 September 1998 – 14 January 2003
President	Andrés Pastrana Arango
Preceded by	Julio Londoño Paredes
Succeeded by	María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar
2nd Attorney General of Colombia
In office 17 August 1994 – 8 May 1997
Nominated by	César Gaviria Trujillo
Preceded by	Gustavo de Greiff Restrepo
Succeeded by	Alfonso Gómez Méndez
Colombia Ambassador to Israel
In office 1 February 1992 – 20 March 1993
President	César Gaviria Trujillo
Succeeded by	Patricio Samper Gnecco
Colombian Minister of National Education
In office 16 August 1990 – 16 November 1991
President	Virgilio Barco Vargas
Succeeded by	Carlos Holmes Trujillo
Member of the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia
In office 20 July 1982 – 20 July 1986
Constituency	Santander Department
Personal details
Born	(1949-10-02) 2 October 1949 Bucaramanga, Santander, Colombia
Nationality	Colombian
Political party	Radical Change (2006-present)
Other political affiliations	Liberal New Liberalism
Spouse(s)	Marta Cecilia León Reyes (1983-present)
Relations	Luis Carlos Galán Sarmiento (cousin)
Children	Sergio Valdivieso León Camilo Valdivieso León
Alma mater	Pontifical Xavierian University (LLB) Boston University (MA)
Profession	Lawyer, Economist

Biography

Alfonso Sarmiento was born in Bucaramanga, Santander to Roberto Valdivieso Sarmiento and Mercedes Sarmiento Suárez.[2] He attended Divino Niño school and San Pedro Claver school. After graduating from Instituto Tecnológico Santandereano, he moved to Bogotá. He attended Pontifical Xavierian University where he graduated in Law with a concentration in Socio-Political Sciences. Afterwards he moved to the United States where he received a Master of Arts in Global Development Economics (MA GDE) from Boston University, and advanced studies in Urban and Regional Development at Toronto University.[3][4]

He is the cousin of the late Luis Carlos Galán, who was assassinated when he was 39 years old.

Political and diplomatic career

As the 2nd Attorney General of Colombia, he brought charges and stood against the administration of Ernesto Samper Pizano during the Proceso 8000. He served as the 24th Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations and as Ambassador of Colombia to Israel. A Radical Change party politician, he was elected Representative and Senator in the Congress of Colombia, and served as Minister of National Education under the administration of Virgilio Barco Vargas.[5]

References

1. "Alfonso Valdivieso Sarmiento". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 2011-01-07.
2. Osorio Osma, Ramiro (1996). Genealogías de Santander [Genealogies of Santander] (in Spanish). Bogotá: Giro. ISBN 978-958-9004-47-0. OCLC 253327151.
3. Hoyos, José Fernando (1997-05-17). "Alfonso Valdivieso, El Animal Político" [Alfonso Valdivieso, The Political Animal]. El Tiempo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2011-01-07.
4. "Alfonso Valdivieso Sarmiento" (in Spanish). Congreso Visible. Retrieved 2011-01-07.
5. "El poder en Colombia: Los Cien Personajes Mas Influyentes de Colombia" [Power In Colombia: The Hundred Most Influential Characters in Colombia]. Dinero (in Spanish). 1995-01-05. ISSN 0798-3522. Retrieved 2011-01-08.

Further reading

• Donadío, Alberto (1996). Yo, El Fiscal [I, The Attorney General] (in Spanish). Bogotá: Intermedio Editores. ISBN 978-958-28-0905-8. OCLC 252965072.