Jairo Raúl Clopatofsky Ghisays (born 20 October 1961) is a Colombian politician. A

Party of the U The Union Party for the People (), or Party of the U (), is a liberal political party in Colombia. The Party is led by former president Juan Manuel Santos. After supporting the presidencies of Álvaro Uribe, Juan Manuel Santos and Iván Duque, ...

politician, Clopatofsky had served in the

Congress of Colombia The Congress of the Republic of Colombia () is the name given to Colombia's bicameral national legislature. The Congress of Colombia consists of the 108-seat Senate, and the 188-seat Chamber of Representatives, Members of both houses are e ...

, as

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

and as Representative for the

Capital District A capital district, capital region, or capital territory is normally a specially designated administrative division where a country's seat of government is located. As such, in a federal model of government, no state or territory has any politic ...

, and most recently as the 17th General Director of

Coldeportes The Administrative Department of Sport, Recreation, Physical Activity and the Use of Free Time, Coldeportes was the national government department of sports in and for Colombia; it is charged with fomenting, planning and organizing the activities ...

from 2010 to 2012. In 1982 he experienced an automotive accident that left him

paraplegic Paraplegia, or paraparesis, is an impairment in motor or sensory function of the lower extremities. The word comes from Ionic Greek () "half-stricken". It is usually caused by spinal cord injury or a congenital condition that affects the neura ...

and reliant on a wheelchair. In 2005 he went through an experimental

stem cell transplant Hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) is the transplantation of multipotent hematopoietic stem cells, usually derived from bone marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cord blood, in order to replicate inside a patient and produce a ...

surgery procedure, using olfactory adult stem cells into the

spinal cord The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular structure made up of nervous tissue that extends from the medulla oblongata in the lower brainstem to the lumbar region of the vertebral column (backbone) of vertebrate animals. The center of the spinal c ...

. After 22 years of paraplegia, and loss of sensation from the waist down, Clopatofsky was able to regain sensation in his legs and successfully took his first steps thanks to physical therapy and the operation.

Career

Clopatofsky studied at the Liceo de La Salle until 10th grade when he enrolled in the Cadet Naval Academy in Cartagena. He graduated from

University of La Sabana The Universidad de La Sabana is a private university in Colombia, supervised by the Ministry of National Education (Colombia), Colombian Ministry of Education. It was founded on September 21, 1979, by the Asociación para la Enseñanza Aspaen, i ...

with a

Bachelor of Business Administration A Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is an undergraduate degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of four years and typically 120 credits of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of busine ...

, and received a scholarship to study at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

where he received a

Master of Public Administration A Master of Public Administration (MPA) is a specialized professional graduate degree in public administration that prepares students for leadership roles, similar or equivalent to a Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the ...

. He also did specializations in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

from the

Pontifical Xavierian University The Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (English: Xavierian Pontifical University) is a private university in Colombia founded in 1623. It is one of the oldest and most traditional Colombian universities, directed by the Society of Jesus, with its ...

, and in

Public Administration Public administration, or public policy and administration refers to "the management of public programs", or the "translation of politics into the reality that citizens see every day",Kettl, Donald and James Fessler. 2009. ''The Politics of the ...

from the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies at the

National Defense University National Defence (or Defense) University (or College) may refer to: :''Alphabetical by country'' University * Marshal Fahim National Defense University, Afghanistan * National Defense University (Azerbaijan) * People's Liberation Army National Defe ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. In 1988 Clopatofsky created the Independent Civic Movement a Colombian political movement, aimed at countering the

partisan Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to: Military * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line ** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII ** Ital ...

political system of the time.

Congressman

In 1991 was elected to the

Chamber of Representatives of Colombia The Chamber of Representatives (Spanish: ''Cámara de Representantes'') is the lower house of the Congress of Colombia. It has 172 members elected to four-year terms. Electoral system According to the Colombian Constitution, the Chamber of ...

for the term between 1991 and 1994 representing

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

. In 1994 Clopatofsky was elected to the

Senate of Colombia The Senate of the Republic of Colombia () is the upper house of the Congress of Colombia, with the lower house being the Chamber of Representatives. The Senate has 108 members elected for concurrent (non- rotating) four-year terms. Electoral ...

for the period between 1994 and 1998. In 2002 he returned to the senate after winning in the legislative elections of 2002. His party then adhered to the Social National Unity Party which supported

Álvaro Uribe Álvaro Uribe Vélez (born 4 July 1952) is a Colombian politician who served as the 31st President of Colombia from 7 August 2002 to 7 August 2010. Uribe started his political career in his home department of Antioquia Department, Antioquia. H ...

to the presidency of Colombia. In 2006 Clopatofsky was reelected in the legislative elections of 2006. Clopatofsky is member of the Second Commission of the Senate which debates topics related to defense and international relations of Colombia, as well as participant in the Special Commission for Foreign Affairs.

Head of Consulate in Western Canada

In 2012 he assumed the role as head of the newly opened Colombian Consulate in Vancouver, Canada.

Philanthropy

Clopatofsky is the founder and director of the ''Fundación Promover por Colombia'' which seeks to benefit people with physical disabilities.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clopatofsky Ghisays, Jairo Raul 1961 births Living people People from Cartagena, Colombia Colombian people of Polish descent Colombian people of Lebanese descent Harvard Kennedy School alumni Colombian political scientists Colombian philanthropists Politicians with paraplegia Social Party of National Unity politicians Members of the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia Members of the Senate of Colombia University of La Sabana alumni Scientists with disabilities