Alberto José Rodriguez-Saá (born August 21, 1949) is an Argentine lawyer and politician. He was Governor of

San Luis Province San Luis () is a Provinces of Argentina, province of Argentina located near the geographical center of the country (on the 32° South parallel). Neighboring provinces are, from the north clockwise, La Rioja Province (Argentina), La Rioja, Córdo ...

on two separate occasions. He was presidential candidate for the center-right peronism, Orthodox and Federal Peronism, in 2007 and

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

. The Rodriguez-Saá family is well known in the Province of San Luis and can be traced to the nineteenth century and to descendants of the Federalist revolutionary Juan Saá, an important figure in the Argentine Civil Wars of the mid nineteenth century. His brother, Adolfo Rodríguez-Saá, was governor of San Luis from 1983 until 2001, when he became interim President of Argentina, resigning after a week.

Biography

Born in San Luis, Rodriguez Saá completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Buenos Aires, where he earned a

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Some law degrees are professional degrees that are prerequisites or serve as preparation for legal careers. These generally include the Bachelor of Civil Law, Bachelor of Laws, an ...

in 1974, specializing in Constitutional Guarantees. He married María Antonia Salino, and they had three children; they were later divorced. He was hired as a legal advisor to the CGT, the nation's largest

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

, in 1980. Between 1983 and 1994, he served as senator for the Province of San Luis. Serving this position in 1986, he voted against the Ley de Punto Final that established the suspension of legal proceedings against the perpetrators of illegal detentions, torture and murder during the military dictatorship. Between 1989 and 1993 he was president of the Justicialist caucus in the

Argentine Senate The Honorable Senate of the Argentine Nation () is the upper house of the National Congress of Argentina. Overview The National Senate was established by the Argentine Confederation on July 29, 1854, pursuant to Articles 46 to 54 of the 185 ...

. With presidential aspirations of his own, in October 1993 he voted against the government project to amend the National Constitution and allow the reelection of the then-President

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronism, Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 200 ...

, known as the " Pacto de Olivos". This has been linked to the kidnapping of his brother shortly afterwards. He resigned from his seat in December 1994. Old Library in University of Salamanca 01

Old Library in University of Salamanca 01

Rodriguez Saá completed postgraduate programs at the University of Salamanca,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, in

constitutional law Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in ...

, community law, and in

art history Art history is the study of Work of art, artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Tradit ...

. He developed a strong interest in environmental and artistic activities, promoting the development of cultural proposals on a national scale. Subsequent to his various postgraduate studies in Spain, he returned to Argentina in 2000 and was elected again as National Senator, being one of the four senators who voted against the Labor Flexibilization Law (pejoratively called "Ley Banelco" for the cash bribes offered a number of senators for its passage by President Fernando de la Rúa's administration). He resigned for the Senate in 2001, and served as Head of the Cabinet of Ministers Leadership of San Luis Province. He was elected Governor of the Province in 2003, and was re-elected in 2007 with over 80% of the vote; the runner up, with 12.2% of the vote, was Roque Palma of the Popular Socialist Party. In 2003 he called for mayoral elections in San Luis, although this exceeded his authority. For a year there were two municipal governments in the city, until the Argentine Supreme Court ruled against Rodriguez Saá and the municipal government his elections had installed was disbanded. Rodriguez Saa promoted a constitutional amendment blocking indefinite re-election in the Province of San Luis. He ran for president in the 2007 general election, representing the more conservative " internal line" of the Justicialist Party, which opposes Kirchnerism. His coalition won nearly 1.5 million votes in 2007 (7.6%), and earned fourth place in a crowded field. In 2011, during his second term as Governor of the Province of San Luis, he was distinguished as “Global Ambassador for Peace” by the World Organization for Peace. This award is given to the highest world personalities such as

Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder a ...

, former Secretary General of the United Nations. He won the award for his policies in San Luis on "Social Inclusion", "Sustainable Environment", "Health and Work", "Nuclear Nonproliferation," and "General Welfare." He is known to heavily campaign in areas where he is certain of winning the majority of votes. His reason for doing so is not to obtain more votes, but to "monitor" local officials to ensure they are responding to the desires of the populace. A friend of former U.S. vice president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate,

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...

, with whom he has had several meetings in the Province of San Luis, Alberto Rodriguez Saá received several awards from the

United Nations Environment Programme The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is responsible for coordinating responses to environmental issues within the United Nations system. It was established by Maurice Strong, its first director, after the Declaration of the United Nati ...

(UNEP), and an official acknowledgment from the Senate of Argentina, both for his environmental policies. Soon after being nominated as Global Ambassador for Peace, Alberto Rodriguez Saá received the Tiradentes Medal, previous winners of which include former Brazilian President

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (; born Luiz Inácio da Silva; 27 October 1945), known Mononym, mononymously as Lula, is a Brazilian politician, trade unionist and former metalworker who has served as the 39th president of Brazil since 2023. A mem ...

and Pope John Paul II. The distinction is in recognition of his humanitarian support including food and aid relief that Rodriguez Saá offered to various Argentine provinces, Brazil, Peru, China, Iran and Haiti; he was also recognized for this by the United States Embassy. The province of San Luis was voted the best managed in the country by private consultants for the seventh consecutive year, in Tax Efficiency Policy, Social indicators, Infrastructure, Fiscal Solvency and International Trade. Moreover, in its ambition to create a local "

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

," San Luis came fourth in a ranking of 150 'digital cities' developed by

Motorola Motorola, Inc. () was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois. It was founded by brothers Paul and Joseph Galvin in 1928 and had been named Motorola since 1947. Many of Motorola's products had been ...

. Rodríguez Saá sought the Federal Peronist nomination for the Presidency in

. Neither he nor his main rival, former President

Eduardo Duhalde Eduardo Alberto Duhalde (; born 5 October 1941) is an Argentina, Argentine former peronist politician who served as the interim President of Argentina from January 2002 to May 2003. He also served as Vice President of Argentina, Vice President ...

, were able to secure a clear majority ahead of the August 14 primaries, however, and each man ran on his own slate: Rodríguez Saá on the Federal Commitment, and Duhalde on the Popular Front. Both were handily defeated by the incumbent, President Cristina Kirchner, though Rodríguez Saá (who earned 1.7 million votes, or 8%) won in his native San Luis Province; he became the only candidate other than Mrs. Kirchner to win in any one jurisdiction.

International awards and honors

"Distinction for his commitment to environmental protection and combating

desertification Desertification is a type of gradual land degradation of Soil fertility, fertile land into arid desert due to a combination of natural processes and human activities. The immediate cause of desertification is the loss of most vegetation. This i ...

, land degradation and mitigating the effects of drought" (June 2011) delivered by the United Nations Convention to combat desertification. Recognition to the Government of the Province of San Luis by the Senate of the Argentinian Nation (March 2011), for having signed on September 6, 2010, the Agreement called "Ten Commandments of peace between Progress and the Environment" and for the effective implementation of sustainable development policies. Upon signing the Treaty of Peace between Progress and the Environment, the Provincial Governor Alberto Rodriguez Saa was greeted by three Nobel Peace Prize winners (Wangari Maathai, Osvaldo Canziani, and Perez Esquivel). "Tiradentes Medal", considered the highest distinction granted by the Carioca State. It is the same award that in previous years was assigned to former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Pope John Paul II. "Global Ambassador for Peace" (March 2011), the highest distinction made by the World Peace Organization in Geneva, for his policies put forward in San Luis on "Social Inclusion", "Sustainable Environment" "Health and Work", "Nuclear Nonproliferation," and "General Welfare", an honor previously bestowed upon Kofi Annan, former Secretary General of the United Nations. "Distinction of the United Nations Environment Program" based in Kenya (March 2011) for having planted more than four million trees. Recognition for his environmental leadership by former U.S. VP, Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore during his visit to the Province of San Luis (2009) Participation in the Global Climate Change Convention in Copenhagen 2010, along with the leaders and presidents of all the nations assembled in order to reach an international agreement on climate change. "Global Leader" (February 2009), a distinction made by the United Nations through the United Nations Program for Environment for his contribution to the Billion Tree Campaign.

Public office

1983–1994: National Senator for the Province of San Luis. In this position he served as: *President of the General Law Committee *1st vice-president of the Peronist bloc (unified) in 1988 *President of the Peronist bloc Honorable Senate of Argentina between 1989 and 1993. 2000: Re-elected Senator by the Province of San Luis. 2001: Chief of Cabinet of the Province of San Luis. 2003: Elected Governor of the Province of San Luis with a mandate until 2007. 2007: Re-elected Governor of the Province of San Luis with a mandate until 2011.

Academic activity

Professor of Labor and Commercial Law at Normal School "Juan Pascual Pringles" National University of San Luis. Fellow Member of the San Luis History Board. Honorary President and founder of the ICCED Foundation. Honorary President and founder of the Institute of Historical and Social Studies "Juan Crisóstomo Lafinur" Director of the Department of Regional Studies – Provincial Institute of Technology – San Luis Professor of the Department Regional Studies – Provincial Institute of Technology – San Luis Founder of "Institute of Legal Editions." San Luis 1999 Professor of the Department of Regional Studies – IUSI

Published works

"The Test of Desmalvinización." Buenos Aires-1985 "Argentine Model for the National Project". Buenos Aires-1986 "Critical Analysis on the national project." Buenos Aires, 1987 "San Luis a destination." San Luis 1997 "Dr. Juan Crisóstomo Lafinur, Notes." San Luis, 1997 "Tragic Cantata to the Death of Colonel Juan Pascual Pringles". San Luis, 2000 "Trilogy in Pringles," San Luis, 2001

Biography

International awards and honors

Public office

Academic activity

Published works

References

External links