57th President of Mexico From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Luis Echeverría Álvarez (Spanish pronunciation: [lwis etʃeβeˈri.a ˈalβaɾes]; 17 January 1922 – 8 July 2022) was an Mexican politician, lawyer and writer. He was President of Mexico from 1970 to 1976.[1][2] He wrote several books about his years in office and about his retirement. During his presidency, his administration was criticized because of their handling of the Mexican Dirty War. He was a member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party. From 1978 to 1979, he was the Mexican Ambassador to Australia and New Zealand.
Luis Echeverría | |
---|---|
57th President of Mexico | |
In office 1 December 1970 – 1 December 1976 | |
Preceded by | Gustavo Díaz Ordaz |
Succeeded by | José López Portillo |
Secretary of the Interior of Mexico | |
In office 16 November 1963 – 11 November 1969 | |
President | Adolfo López Mateos Gustavo Díaz Ordaz |
Preceded by | Gustavo Díaz Ordaz |
Succeeded by | Mario Moya Palencia |
Personal details | |
Born | Luis Echeverría Álvarez 17 January 1922 Mexico City, Mexico |
Died | 8 July 2022 100) Cuernavaca, Mexico | (aged
Political party | Institutional Revolutionary |
Height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) |
Spouse(s) |
María Esther Zuno
(m. 1945; died 1999) |
Children | 8 |
Parents | Rodolfo Echeverría Catalina Álvarez |
Alma mater | National Autonomous University of Mexico (LLB) |
When he was president, Echeverría banned almost every form of rock music in Mexico because of the rise of youth protestors in the 1970s.[3][4][5][6] In 1971, he created the country's first environmental law.[7]
He was a critic of dictators such as Augusto Pinochet and gave refugees asylum in Mexico. He also had a close partnership with Chairman Mao Zedong.[8] He was an unsuccessful candidate for United Nations Secretary-General.
Echeverría did not have good relations with Israel after supporting a UN resolution that made Zionism the same as racism.[9][10]
When he was president, Echeverría brought economic growth to the Mexican economy, as it grew by 6.1% and fixed the country's infrastructure.[11] However, many saw that his presidency was authoritarian.[12][13] Many blamed him for the 1971 Corpus Christi massacre against student protesters, the Dirty War against leftist critics in the country,[14][15] and the economic crisis that happened in Mexico towards the end of his term.[16]
Echeverría was born in Mexico City, Mexico and studied at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. He turned 100 in January 2022.[17] He was married to María Esther Zuno from 1945 until her death in 1999. They had eight children.
In 2006, he was indicted and ordered under house arrest for his role in the 1968 Tlatelolco massacre and the 1971 Corpus Christi massacre,[18] but in 2009 the charges against him were dropped.[19]
Echeverría died at his home in Cuernavaca, Mexico from problems caused by pneumonia on 8 July 2022 at the age of 100.[20]
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.