President of Panama 1931?1932
In this
Spanish name
, the first or paternal
surname
is
Alfaro
and the second or maternal family name is
Jovane
.
Ricardo Joaquin Alfaro Jovane
(August 20, 1882 – February 23, 1971) served as 16th
President of Panama
from January 16, 1931 to June 5, 1932. He belonged to the
Liberal Party
.
Early career
[
edit
]
Alfaro was born in
Panama City
in 1882.
[1]
He began a career in the diplomatic service in 1905 as under-secretary for foreign affairs. He was first assigned to the U.S. in 1912 as legal counselor of the Panamanian legation for the
Panama
-
Costa Rica
border dispute. Alfaro was also involved in settling numerous disputes arising from the construction of the
Panama Canal
. From 1915 to 1918, he was judge of a joint commission between
Panama
and the
United States
for settling claims relating to expropriations for the construction of the
Canal
. Later, in 1934 to 1936 and again, in 1953, Alfaro was involved in critical negotiations relating to
Panama?United States relations
concerning the
Canal
.
From 1922 to 1930, and from 1933 to 1936, Alfaro was Panamanian envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to the
U.S.
In 1946, he was appointed
Panama
's minister of foreign relations; however, he resigned in 1947 to protest a proposed agreement with the
U.S.
relating to the
Panama Canal
.
He was elected as
the first presidential designate
by the
National Assembly
for the term 1928-1930.
[2]
In 1931, after a revolution in
Panama
, Alfaro was invited to become his country's president, a position he accepted and held from January 16, 1931 through June 5, 1932. In 1940, he was defeated in the presidential election; however continued to serve his country by helping to draft a new constitution for
Panama
in 1944.
[3]
Working for the United Nations
[
edit
]
A significant portion of Alfaro's service to his country related to his work in the
United Nations
. In 1945, he headed the U.N. Relief and Recovery Administration mission to ten
Latin American
republics. He was also
Panama
's delegate to the
United Nations Conference on International Organization
in
San Francisco
and chairman of the special committee that drafted the
Spanish
text of the
United Nations Charter
of 1945.
In 1949, Alfaro was chairman of the legal committee of the
Third session of the United Nations General Assembly
that drew up the text of the
Convention on Genocide
. From 1949 to 1953 served as member of the
International Law Commission
. In that capacity, he promoted the Declaration on the Rights and Duties of States,
[4]
and his draft became the basis of the version eventually approved by the commission.
[5]
On June 3, 1949, he was appointed by that commission as rapporteur on the desirability of establishing a permanent court to try persons guilty of
genocide
.
[6]
Academic career
[
edit
]
In addition to his governmental and diplomatic experience, Alfaro's professional acumen derived from a background in law. He was formerly a professor of civil and international law in Panamanian universities. He was also a member of the subcommittee that drafted treaties and arbitrated for the Inter-American Conference on Conciliation and Arbitration held in the
U.S.
in 1929. From 1959 to 1964, Dr. Alfaro was a judge at the
International Court of Justice
, serving his last three years as vice-president. In 1964, Dr. Alfaro retired from his official duties.
Alfaro was the author of many articles and books on
Panama
, and was the recipient of numerous awards and citations for a career dedicated to improving conditions both in his country and globally.
Alfaro died in his eighty-ninth year in
Panama City
on February 23, 1971. He was survived by his wife, Amelia Lyons de Alfaro; three sons, Victor Ricardo of Washington, Ivan Jose of Lima, Peru, and Rogelio Edwin of Panama City; two daughters, Mrs. Frank H. Weller (nee Amelia or Amelita Victoria) of
Potomac, Maryland
, and Mr. H. Cabell Maddux (nee Yolanda Maria) of
McLean, Virginia
; and many grandchildren and greatgrandchildren, among them the singer
Nancy Ames
, and attorney and TV personality Elbert Alfaro in Miami Lakes, Florida.
Alfaro's legal philosophy
[
edit
]
Throughout his activities as professor of law and member of various judicial bodies, Alfaro promoted the notion of universal criminal jurisdiction and government accountability at all levels. An example to that effect can be seen in that during the deliberations on the law of treaties at the ILC, he opposed the notion that an international agreement reached by exchange of notes did not require ratification by the state legislature of the contracting states.
[7]
He held the
Nuremberg Principles
in high esteem and viewed them as an integral part of the principles of world order and world peace.
[8]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Resena Biografica - Ricardo J. Alfaro"
.
- ^
Guizado, Fernando Berguido (1987).
"La sucesion presidencial en el derecho panameno"
.
- ^
"Biografia de Ricardo J. Alfaro"
(in Mexican Spanish). 2018-03-27
. Retrieved
2024-03-22
.
- ^
Yearbook of the International Law Commission, 1949
, pp. 61ff
- ^
Declaration on the Rights and Duties of States with Commentary
- ^
Yearbook of the ILC, 1949
, p. 238
- ^
Yearbook of the ILC, 1950
, vol. 1, p. 68
- ^
Yearbook of the ILC, 1950
, vol. 1, p. 150
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