Antanas Mockus Šivickas | |
---|---|
794th Mayor of Bogotá | |
In office 1 January 2001 – 31 December 2003 |
|
Preceded by | Enrique Peñalosa Londoño |
Succeeded by | Luis Eduardo Garzón |
791st Mayor of Bogotá | |
In office 1 January 1995 – 10 April 1997 |
|
Preceded by | Jaime Castro Castro |
Succeeded by | Paul Bromberg |
Rector of the National University of Colombia | |
In office 1990–1993 |
|
Succeeded by | Guillermo Páramo Rocha |
Personal details | |
Born |
Aurelijus Rutenis Antanas Mockus Šivickas 25 March 1952 Bogotá, D.C., Colombia |
Nationality | Colombia |
Political party | Independent |
Other political affiliations |
Colombian Green Party Indigenous Social Alliance Movement Yes Colombia Visionarios con Antanas Mockus |
Spouse(s) | Adriana Córdoba |
Alma mater |
National University of Colombia University of Burgundy |
Occupation | Politician, Activist |
Profession | Philosopher; mathematician |
Religion | Roman Catholic |
Aurelijus Rūtenis Antanas Mockus Šivickas (born 25 March 1952) is a Colombian mathematician, philosopher, and politician. He has a master's degree in philosophy from the Colombian University, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, and a Honoris Causa PhD from L’université de Paris.
He is the son of Lithuanian immigrants. He left office as the president of the National University of Colombia in Bogotá in 1993, and later that year ran a successful campaign for mayor. He proceeded to preside over Bogotá as mayor for two (non-consecutive) terms, during which he became known for springing surprising and humorous initiatives upon the city's inhabitants. These tended to involve grand gestures, including local artists or personal appearances by the mayor himself—taking a shower in a commercial about conserving water, or walking the streets dressed in spandex and a cape as Supercitizen. On 4 March 2010, he was elected in a public consultation as the Colombian Green Party candidate for the presidential election in 2010.
On 4 April 2010, Antanas Mockus chose Sergio Fajardo, former mayor of Medellín, as his vice-presidential running mate. On 9 April 2010 he announced that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. He told La W radio: "The prediction is that this will not affect my mental activities. I think it is absolutely fitting to tell the people about the diagnosis and about the prognosis—which is 12 years or more of normal life thanks to medication." Mockus finished second in the polling, leading to a runoff election with Juan Manuel Santos, which Santos won. Mockus resigned from the Green Party in June 2011 because he opposed its Bogotá mayoral candidate being supported by former right-wing President Álvaro Uribe.