Emilio Álvarez Montalván (31 July 1919 – 2 July 2014) was a

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean Sea, Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to ...

ophthalmologist Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgery, surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Followin ...

and a Foreign Minister of the

Republic of Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

Biography

Emilio Álvarez Montalván was born in

Managua, Nicaragua ) , settlement_type = Capital city , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Nicara ...

. In 1946, he received a Doctorate in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Chile, School of Medicine, graduating

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...

. He later studied ophthalmology at the Instituto de Oftalmología, Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1949. His post-graduate studies included work at the National Center for Ophthalmology in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

, the Institute of Ophthalmology in London, and, lastly, at the

New York Eye and Ear Infirmary New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai (NYEE) is located at East 14th Street and Second Avenue in lower Manhattan, New York City. Founded on August 14, 1820, NYEE is America's first specialty hospital and one of the most prominent in th ...

in New York City. Álvarez was also an active participant in Nicaraguan politics, and a writer of international repute. In 1954–55, he was incarcerated for one year during the dictatorship of

Anastasio Somoza García Anastasio Somoza García (1 February 1896 – 29 September 1956) was the leader of Nicaragua from 1937 until his assassination in 1956. He was only officially the 21st President of Nicaragua from 1 January 1937 to 1 May 1947 and from 21 May 19 ...

. In 1996, at age 77, he was appointed Foreign Minister of Nicaragua. After his retirement from public office and medical practice, Álvarez continued to influence national policy through published articles and lectures on politics, with special emphasis on national political culture. In 2006-07, he was awarded honorary doctorates for his research and contributions to the latter.

Family

Emilio Alvarez was married to Carmen Guerra; the couple had six children.

Career

* Doctor of Ophthalmology * Founder of the Clínica Oftalmológica del Hospital Bautista for the Poor, Managua, Nicaragua (1949) * Chief of services of Ophthalmology at the "Hospital el Retiro", Managua, Nicaragua (1950) * Founder/Director, Centro de Oftalmología, Clinica y Eye Hospital, Managua, Nicaragua * Editor, ''Medica'' (magazine), Managua, Nicaragua (1958) * Founder and first President of ''Ética y Transparencia'' * President of ''Juventud Conservadora'' * National Vice-president of the

Conservative Party of Nicaragua The Conservative Party () is a conservative political party in Nicaragua. Its slogan is “Dios, Orden, Justicia” (), often depicted on the three sides of a triangle. History The party is the oldest currently existing in Nicaragua. It was fo ...

(1967) * Director, Escuela de Formación Política, Managua, Nicaragua (1968) * Member of the editorial board of '' La Prensa'', Managua, Nicaragua (1968–83) * Columnist for "La Prensa", Managua, Nicaragua beginning (1976) * Consultant to the Conservative Party of Nicaragua (1981) * Pre-candidate for President of the Republic for the Conservative Party (1990) * Personal representative of President

Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Violeta Barrios Torres de Chamorro (; 18 October 1929) is a Nicaraguan politician who served as President of Nicaragua from 1990 to 1997. She was the first and, as of 2022, only woman to hold the position of president of Nicaragua. Born int ...

to negotiate with the Army of the Resistance" (1991) * Founder/President, Grupo Fundemos (1990) * Columnist, ''La Tribuna'', Managua, Nicaragua (1994) * Distinguished Member of the Academy of Nicaragua for the Spanish Language (1996) * President of the Academy of History and Geography (1997) * Perpetual Honorary President of the Conservative Party of Nicaragua * Consultant, Grupo Fundemos * President, Fundación Cultural Nicaragua China * Foreign Minister of Nicaragua (1997–98)

Honours and awards

* Gold Medal of the Sociedad Nicaragüense de Oftalmología, Nicaragua *

Order of Bernardo O'Higgins The Order of Bernardo O'Higgins ( es, Orden de Bernardo O'Higgins) is an award issued by Chile. It is the highest civilian honor awarded to non-Chilean citizens. This award was established in 1965 and named after one of the founders of the Chilean ...

, Chile (1984) * Academic Award, France (1985) * Cruz del Sur, Brazil (1997) * Grand Cross of the ''Order of José Dolores Estrada'', Managua, Nicaragua (1998) * San Martinianas Award of the "Instituto San Martin", Buenos Aires, Argentina (1998) *

Order of the Sacred Treasure The is a Japanese order, established on 4 January 1888 by Emperor Meiji as the Order of Meiji. Originally awarded in eight classes (from 8th to 1st, in ascending order of importance), since 2003 it has been awarded in six classes, the lowest tw ...

(1st class, Grand Cordon), Emperor Akito of Japan (2003) * Honorary D.Sc., Thomas More College (2006) * Honorary D.Sc.,

Ave Maria College of the Americas Keiser University - Latin American Campus (KU) is a branch campus of Keiser University in Florida, United States. It is located in the small town of San Marcos, Carazo, Nicaragua. It is perhaps one of the only U.S. universities in Central America o ...

(2007) * Honorary Member, Instituto de Estudios para la Gobernabilidad y Democracia (2008)

Bibliography

''El mensaje de los ojos''
Managua, 1984 * ''Síntesis Crítica del Marxismo'' (1986) * ''Las fuerzas armadas en Nicaragua: Sinópsis histórica, 1821-1994'', Managua, Nicaragua, 1994

Cultura Política Nicaragüense, 2nd edition (2000)], elnuevodiario.com.ni; 31 July 1999

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alvarez Montalvan, Emilio 2014 deaths 1919 births Nicaraguan diplomats Nicaraguan political writers Nicaraguan ophthalmologists People from Managua Foreign Ministers of Nicaragua University of Chile alumni Expatriates in Chile Expatriates in Argentina Nicaraguan expatriates in the United States Expatriates in the United Kingdom Nicaraguan expatriates in France