Secretary General of the Organization of American States
Encyclopedia
According to the Charter of the Organization of American States
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Charter of the Organization of American States
The Charter of the Organization of the American States is a Pan-American treaty that sets out the creation of the Organization of American States. It was signed at the Ninth International Conference of American States of 30 April 1948, held in Bogotá, Colombia...
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- The Secretary General shall direct the General Secretariat, be the legal representative thereof, and [...] be responsible to the General AssemblyGeneral Assembly of the Organization of American StatesThe General Assembly is the supreme decision-making body of the Organization of American States .The General Assembly came into being as a part of the restructuring of the OAS that took place following adoption of the Protocol of Buenos Aires , which contained extensive amendments to the...
for the proper fulfillment of the obligations and functions of the General Secretariat.
- The Secretary General of the OrganizationOrganization of American StatesThe Organization of American States is a regional international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States...
shall be elected by the General Assembly for a five-year term and may not be reelected more than once or succeeded by a person of the same nationality. In the event that the office of Secretary General becomes vacant, the Assistant Secretary General shall assume his duties until the General Assembly shall elect a new Secretary General for a full term.
- The Secretary General, or his representative, may participate with voice but without vote in all meetings of the Organization.
- The Secretary General may bring to the attention of the General Assembly or the Permanent CouncilPermanent Council of the Organization of American StatesThe Permanent Council is one of the two main political bodies of the Organization of American States, the other being the General Assembly.The Permanent Council is established under Chapter XII of the OAS Charter. It is composed of ambassadors appointed by the member states , and it meets regularly...
any matter which in his opinion might threaten the peace and security of the Hemisphere or the development of the Member States.
Secretaries General of the OAS
| # | Period | Name | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1948–1954 | Alberto Lleras Camargo Alberto Lleras Camargo Alberto Lleras Camargo was an important Colombian diplomat and political figure.He was a member of the Liberal Party of Colombia; he served as congressman , Minister of Education, Minister of the Interior and Minister of Foreign Affairs, during the governments of Alfonso López Pumarejo and Eduardo... |
 Colombia |
| 2 | 1954–1955 | Carlos Dávila Carlos Dávila Carlos Gregorio Dávila Espinoza , was a Chilean political figure, Chairman of Government Junta of Chile in 1932, and Secretary General of the Organization of American States from 1954 until his death in 1955.-Early life:... Died while in office |
 Chile |
| 3 | 1956–1968 | José A. Mora |  Uruguay |
| 4 | 1968–1975 | Galo Plaza Galo Plaza Galo Plaza Lasso was an Ecuadorian politician and statesman who served as the Ecuadorian Ambassador to the U.S, President of Ecuador from 1948 to 1952, and Secretary General of the Organization of American States from 1968 to 1975... |
 Ecuador |
| 5 | 1975–1984 | Alejandro Orfila Alejandro Orfila Alejandro Orfila was an Argentine career diplomat.-Early career:Born to Catalan immigrants who had become moderately successful Mendoza Province vintners, Alejandro Orfila received a Law Degree at the University of Buenos Aires in 1945... |
 Argentina |
| 6 | 1984–1994 | João Clemente Baena Soares João Clemente Baena Soares João Clemente Baena Soares is a Brazilian diplomat.Soares was born in Belém. He working at the Brazilian Ministry of External Relations for 31 years before being elected to serve as Secretary General of the Organization of American States from 1984 to 1994.Between 1997 and 2006, he was a member of... |
 Brazil |
| 7 | 1994–2004 | César Gaviria César Gaviria César Gaviria Trujillo is a Colombian politician and a Latin American statesman. He served as President of Colombia from 1990 to 1994, and Secretary General of the Organization of American States from 1994 until 2004.-Early life:... Re-elected to a second term at the 1999 General Assembly |
Colombia |
| 8 | 15 September 2004 – 15 October 2004 | Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Echeverría is a Costa Rican economist, lawyer, businessman, and politician. He served as President of Costa Rica from 1998 to 2002 and was briefly Secretary General of the Organization of American States in 2004, before stepping down and returning to his country to face... Resigned |
 Costa Rica |
| – | 15 October 2004 – 26 May 2005 | Luigi R. Einaudi Luigi R. Einaudi Luigi R. Einaudi is an Italian-American U.S. career diplomat. He assumed the post of Acting Secretary General of the Organization of American States in October 2004 upon the resignation of Secretary General Miguel Ángel Rodríguez.... (acting) |
 United States |
| 9 | 26 May 2005 – present | José Miguel Insulza José Miguel Insulza José Miguel Insulza Salinas is a Chilean politician and statesman. He is currently the Secretary General of the Organization of American States. He is nicknamed El Panzer, for his tank-like drive and reputation due to his ability to take political heat with little apparent damage... Elected 2 May 2005 (see: OAS Secretary General election, 2005 OAS Secretary General election, 2005 The Organization of American States Secretary General election was a series of special sessions of the General Assembly of the Organization of American States held during 2005 in Washington, D.C., United States to elect a new Secretary General... ) |
Chile |
Assistant Secretaries General of the OAS
- William Manger (United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) (1948–1958) - William SandersWilliam SandersWilliam Sanders may refer to:* William Sanders * William Sanders * William Sanders * William David Sanders , U.S. teacher and victim of Columbine High School massacre...
(United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) (1958–1968) - M. Rafael Urquía (El SalvadorEl SalvadorEl Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
) (1968–1975) - Jorge Luis Zelaya Coronado (GuatemalaGuatemalaGuatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
) (1975–1980) - Val T. McComie (BarbadosBarbadosBarbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
) (1980–1990) - Christopher R. Thomas (Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
) (1990–2000) - Luigi R. EinaudiLuigi R. EinaudiLuigi R. Einaudi is an Italian-American U.S. career diplomat. He assumed the post of Acting Secretary General of the Organization of American States in October 2004 upon the resignation of Secretary General Miguel Ángel Rodríguez....
(United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) (2000 – July 2005) - Albert Ramdin (SurinameSurinameSuriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
) (19 July 2005–present)