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

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

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

and a

Foreign Minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

of the Republic of Nicaragua.

Biography

Emilio Álvarez Montalván was born in

Managua, Nicaragua Managua () is the capital city, capital and largest city of Nicaragua, and one of the List of largest cities in Central America, largest cities in Central America. Located on the shores of Lake Managua, the city had an estimated population of 1, ...

. 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 Sout ...

. He later studied ophthalmology at the Instituto de Oftalmología,

Buenos Aires, Argentina Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

in 1949. His post-graduate studies included work at the National Center for Ophthalmology in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, the Institute of Ophthalmology in London, and, lastly, at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary 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 1936 until his assassination in 1956. He was officially the 21st President of Nicaragua from 1 January 1937 to 1 May 1947 and from 21 May 1950 unt ...

. In 1996, at age 77, he was appointed

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 (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 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 () 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 state, the independentist gener ...

, 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 (distinction), 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 c ...

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

Bibliography

* , Managua, 1984 * ''Síntesis Crítica del Marxismo'' (1986) * ''Las fuerzas armadas en Nicaragua: Sinópsis histórica, 1821-1994'', Managua, Nicaragua, 1994
Brújula para leer 2
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 Ministers of foreign affairs of Nicaragua University of Chile alumni Nicaraguan expatriates in Chile Nicaraguan expatriates in Argentina Nicaraguan expatriates in the United States Nicaraguan expatriates Nicaraguan expatriates in France Expatriates in the United Kingdom