Andrés Pastrana Arango | |
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30th President of Colombia | |
In office August 7, 1998 – August 7, 2002 |
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Vice President | Gustavo Bell Lemus (1998-2002) |
Preceded by | Ernesto Samper Pizano |
Succeeded by | Álvaro Uribe Vélez |
30th Colombia Ambassador to United States | |
In office October 24, 2005 – July 11, 2006 |
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President | Álvaro Uribe Vélez |
Preceded by | Luis Alberto Moreno |
Succeeded by | Carolina Barco Isakson |
18th Secretary General of Non-Aligned Movement | |
In office August 7, 1998 – September 2, 1998 |
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Preceded by | Ernesto Samper Pizano |
Succeeded by | Nelson Mandela |
18th Mayor of Bogotá | |
In office January 1, 1988 – January 1, 1990 |
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Preceded by | Julio César Sánchez |
Succeeded by | Juan Martín Caycedo Ferrer |
Personal details | |
Born |
Bogotá, D.C., Colombia |
August 17, 1954
Nationality | Colombian |
Political party | Conservative |
Other political affiliations |
Great Alliance for Change |
Spouse(s) | Nohra Puyana Bickenbach (1981-present) |
Relations | Misael Pastrana Borrero (father) |
Children |
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Alma mater |
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Profession | Lawyer |
Religion | Roman Catholic |
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Andrés Pastrana Arango (born August 17, 1954) was the 30th President of Colombia from 1998 to 2002, following in the footsteps of his father, Misael Pastrana Borrero, who was president from 1970 to 1974. Until 2016, he is the last president from the Conservative Party.
During his father's presidency, he was a student in Colegio San Carlos. He got a degree in law at the Our Lady of the Rosary University in 1977, and attended Harvard University as a 1978 Weatherhead Center for International Affairs Fellow. He founded the magazine Guión and a programadora known as Datos y Mensajes, whose flagship program was the newscast Noticiero TV Hoy. As a regular news anchor he became a nationally known figure.
In 1982 he formally began his political career, gaining a seat on the local Bogotá council. He also specialized in press articles on the production and trafficking of cocaine, for which he gained many journalistic awards. In 1991 he was elected Senator.
He was kidnapped on January 18, 1988 in Antioquia by the Medellín Cartel, which was pressuring the Colombian government into preventing the extradition of Pablo Escobar and other drug lords to the United States. He was found by the National Police a week later, and in March he was elected Mayor of Bogotá, a position he held until 1990.
In 1994 he stood for the presidency against Liberal candidate Ernesto Samper, losing by only 2 points in the second round. Pastrana immediately accused Samper of using drug money to finance his campaign, and provided audio recordings to the authorities which subsequently attracted much media attention and eventually led to a scandal known as 8.000 Process (Proceso 8.000).