Enrique Olaya Herrera

Enrique Olaya Herrera

Enrique Olaya Herrera (born November 12, 1880 in Guateque , Departamento de Boyacá , † February 18, 1937 in Rome ) was a Colombian journalist , diplomat and politician of the Partido Republicano and the Partido Liberal Colombiano . He was Secretary of State several times , long-time ambassador to the United States and President of the Republic of Colombia between 1930 and 1934 . Most recently he was ambassador to the Holy See from 1935 until his death .

Life

Journalist and co-founder of the Partido Republicano

Olaya Herrera started working as a journalist when she was twelve years old and founded the daily newspaper El Patriota under the nickname “el periodista niño de Guateque” ('the children's journalist of Guateque') . After finishing school, he studied law at the Universidad Republicana and the Université libre de Bruxelles and founded the weekly newspaper El Estudiante and later the two daily newspapers El diario Nacional and El Comercio during his studies . As a journalist, he also wrote numerous reports for the daily newspaper El Autonomista .

He began his political activity in the War of the Thousand Days (Guerra de los Mil Días) , a civil war that devastated the Republic of Colombia and its then province of Panama between 1899 and 1902 and which in today's historiography mostly as a dispute between the Conservative Party and the Liberal Party with its various factions is considered. 1905 took place its graduation to the doctor of law with the thesis La cláusula de la nación more favorecida, cuestiones territorial , which dealt with border problems and territorial issues.

1909 founded Olaya Herrera along with Carlos Eugenio Restrepo the Republican Party (Partido Republicano) and was one of the keynote speakers of the Movimiento del 13 de marzo de 1909 ( "Movement of March 13, 1909"), which of the overthrow dictatorial ruling President Rafael Reyes led . As a representative of the Republican Party in 1910 he took part in the Constituent Assembly for the Reform of the Constitution of 1886 (Asamblea Constituyente para la reforma de la Constitución de 1886) .

Secretary of State, Secretary of Agriculture and Ambassador to the United States

After Carlos Eugenio Restrepo was elected President, Olaya Herrera was appointed Foreign Minister (Ministro de Relaciones Exteriores) by him in 1910 , but only held this post for a year until 1911. As Foreign Minister, he founded his own with the Boletín del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores Ministry briefing.

In the following years he concentrated again on his activities as a journalist and editor of the newspapers he founded.

During the tenure of President Jorge Holguín he was foreign minister again between 1921 and 1922 and at the same time took over the office of minister of agriculture (Ministro de Agricultura) in his cabinet. He was then appointed ambassador to the USA by President Pedro Nel Ospina in 1922 and held this post until 1930.

President of Colombia from 1930 to 1934

In 1930, Olaya Herrera was elected President of Colombia to succeed Miguel Abadia Méndez himself and held the presidency for four years until he was replaced by Alfonso López Pumarejo in 1934. His presidency - the first of a Liberal incumbent since 1886 - ushered in the beginning of liberal hegemony (Hegemonía Liberal) in the 1930s and 1940s.

The Colombian-Peruvian War, which lasted from September 1, 1932 to May 24, 1933, over border disputes over the Amazon port of Leticia in the Tres Fronteras area , was settled in the Protocol of Rio de Janeiro in May 1934 with the support of the League of Nations , and provided that Leticia was handed back to Colombia in July. The treaty also provided for the demilitarization of the area and guaranteed Peru free access to the Amazon and Río Putumayo . Likewise were inches - and trade agreements closed and transport legal issues of river navigation clarified. In return, the Salomón-Lozano Treaty was reaffirmed and Peru issued a formal apology for the invasion in September 1932. The Brazilian mediator Cândido Rondon was also involved in the conclusion of this peace treaty .

Domestically, during his presidency he dealt with solving social problems and reforms in the areas of labor law, public welfare, and the protection of workers and peasants. On the other hand, there was a policy of national concentration through support for local industry and the construction of roads and railways. Public education was also strengthened, in particular through an improvement in teacher training and oil production. In addition, the Credit Authority for Agriculture, Industry and Mining (Caja de Crédito Agrario Industrial y Minero) , the Central Mortgage Bank (Banco Central Hipotecario) and the National Association of Coffee Growers (Federación Nacional de Cafeteros) were founded . In 1931 the Salón de Artistas Colombianos took place for the first time , a nationally important cultural event.

During the tenure of his successor he was foreign minister again briefly in 1935 before he was appointed ambassador to the Holy See by him in 1935 and held this office until his death in 1937.

The airport Enrique Olaya Herrera in Medellín , the main base of the airlines Aerolínea de Antioquia and the former airline West Caribbean Airways, was named in his honor . In addition, the place Olaya Herrera in the Departamento de Nariño , the Parque Estadio Olaya Herrera and the Colegio Enrique Olaya Herrera in Bogotá as well as the Enrique Olaya Herrera National Park , in which the mountain Monserrate is located, was named.

Publications

• La cláusula de la nación más favorecida, Cuestiones territoriales , dissertation, 1905
• Mensaje al Congreso Nacional sobre las medidas adoptadas en desarrollo de las leyes 99 y 119 de 1931 , 1932

Background literature

• Gabriel Castro: La salvación de Colombia. Relación completa y detallada del gran movimiento político habido en la república de Colombia a fines de año 1929 y principios de 1930 , 1930
• José Manuel Pérez Sarmiento: Reminiscencias liberales. 1897-1937 , 1938
• Gustavo Humberto Rodríguez: Olaya Herrera, político, estadista y caudillo , 1981

Web links

• Entry in Biografías y Vidas
• Entry in Busca Biografías
• Bibliography ( Open Library )

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Colombia: Foreign Ministers (rulers.org)
2. ^ Colombia: Presidents (rulers.org)
3. ↑ Homepage of Enrique Olaya Herrera Airport
4. ↑ Homepage of the Colegio Enrique Olaya Herrera

predecessor	Office	successor
Miguel Abadia Méndez	President of Colombia 1930–1934	Alfonso López Pumarejo