Emilio Álvarez Icaza

Emilio Álvarez Icaza Longoria (born 31 March 1965) is a Mexican human rights ombudsman and activist serving as a senator in the LXIV Legislature of the Mexican Congress from Mexico City. He previously served as the president of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

Emilio Álvarez Icaza Longoria
Senator of the Congress of the Union
from Mexico City
Assumed office
1 September 2018
Serving with Martí Batres Guadarrama
and Minerva Citlalli Hernández Mora
Preceded byPablo Escudero Morales
Personal details
Born (1965-03-31) 31 March 1965
Mexico City
Political partyIndependent
Alma materUniversidad Nacional Autónoma de México
OccupationHuman rights activist and ombudsman, professor

Life and political career

Álvarez was born on 31 March 1965 in Mexico City, Mexico.[1] Álvarez holds a degree in sociology from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and a master's degree in social sciences from the Latin American Social Sciences Institute.[2] From 1986 to 1988 and again from 1990 to 1999, he worked at the Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social, becoming its leader from August 1994 to January 1999.[1]

In 1999, he became one of the first electoral councilors of the new Instituto Electoral del Distrito Federal. Two years later, he was elected to head the Human Rights Commission of the Federal District (CDHDF), serving two four-year terms.[1]

Álvarez has taught graduate courses at a variety of schools, including the UNAM, Universidad Iberoamericana, and the Center for Humanities Teaching and Studies of the State of Morelos.[1] Álvarez Icaza is also a member of the Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity, who were organizers of the main protests during the October 15th Movement.[3]

President of the IACHR

On 19 July 2012, Álvarez was chosen to be the executive secretary of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) for a four-year term, taking the post on 16 August.[4][2] While serving on the IACHR, the Procuraduría General de la República opened an investigation against him for alleged misuse of funds given by the Mexican government to the IACHR to finance its activities relating to the Ayotzinapa mass disappearance; the investigation was ultimately abandoned.[5]

In 2016, he was replaced by Paulo Abrão of Brazil.[6]

Ahora movement and presidential bid

On 27 February 2017, Álvarez announced he was launching a political movement in Mexico City, known as Ahora (Now), initially with the goal of putting citizen candidates on the ballot in 2018 and as a vehicle for an independent presidential bid. That October, citing the outcome of the State of Mexico election earlier that year, he withdrew his candidacy, worried that the election had been too similar to that of 1988 and declaring that he "would not be useful to the PRI", like other independent candidates who he claimed had their candidacies secretly supported by the presidency.[7][8]

2018 Senate candidacy

In March 2018, Álvarez announced that Ahora would back the Por México al Frente coalition, including presidential candidate Ricardo Anaya Cortés, and that the movement would run legislative candidates in the coalition, with three candidates for Senate and five for the Chamber of Deputies.[9][10] Álvarez joined the PAN-PRD-MC Senate ticket for Mexico City alongside Xóchitl Gálvez Ruiz.[11] The ticket finished second in the election, giving Álvarez a seat as the first minority senator.[12]

On 23 August 2018, Álvarez announced he would serve as an independent senator and not join the caucuses of any of the parties that ran him for Senate, noting that he is not a member of any of them; additionally, the other Ahora candidates elected, Ana Lucía Riojas Martínez and Carlos Morales Vázquez, would enter the legislature as independents, though they ran on the PRD and PAN lists, respectively.[13]

Personal life

Álvarez is married and has three children.[1]

References
  1. "Curriculum Vitae – Emilio Álvarez Icaza Longoria" (PDF). Organization of American States (in Spanish). May 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  2. "Emilio Álvarez Icaza, secretario ejecutivo de la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos". La Jornada (in Spanish). July 20, 2012. p. 19. Retrieved July 20, 2012.
  3. "Emilio Álvarez Icaza es elegido nuevo secretario de la CIDH". El Informador (in Spanish). 19 July 2012. Retrieved 19 July 2012.
  4. "IACHR makes its choice of Emilio Álvarez Icaza for Executive Secretary". Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. 19 July 2012. Retrieved 19 July 2012.
  5. Vela, David Saúl (5 April 2016). "PGR archiva denuncia contra Emilio Álvarez Icaza por presunto fraude". El Financiero (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  6. "Eligen relevo de Emilio Álvarez Icaza en CIDH". El Universal (in Spanish). 27 July 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  7. "No seré funcional al PRI: Emilio Álvarez Icaza retira su candidatura independiente para 2018". Animal Político (in Spanish). 8 October 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  8. Salgado, Agustín (8 June 2018). "Sumar al movimiento Ahora al Frente no es traición, es continuar la lucha en el Senado: Álvarez Icaza". Animal Político (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  9. "La iniciativa Ahora se suma al Frente y respalda la candidatura de Anaya". Animal Político (in Spanish). 26 March 2018. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  10. "Frente incorporó a Ahora, Álvarez Icaza buscará Senado". Político.mx (in Spanish). 26 March 2018. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  11. Zavala, Misael (19 February 2018). "Avala PRD candidaturas; van Álvarez Icaza y Xóchitl Gálvez". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  12. Notimex (8 July 2018). "Emilio Álvarez Icaza recibe constancia que lo acredita como senador electo". El Economista (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  13. "Álvarez Icaza desaira a PAN, PRD y MC; será senador independiente". Reporte Indigo (in Spanish). 23 August 2018. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.