[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 103 (Friday, July 12, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1274-E1275]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO CARLOS LLERAS

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 12, 1996

  Mr. FARR of California. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to pay tribute to 
Carlos Lleras, a man who exemplifies the very best in public service. 
He retires this month after valiantly serving his country of Colombia 
for the past 2 years as their Ambassador to the United States. 
Ambassador Lleras has diligently represented his people, and it has 
been my pleasure to work with him through his tenure. His distinguished 
background will serve him well as he enters the next stage of his 
professional career.
  Ambassador Lleras came to the United States of America in 1994 with 
impressive credentials. While he draws upon his vast intellectual 
capacity in fields as expansive as agrology, economics, and law, he is 
masterful in his application of this knowledge. His past is as broad as 
it is deep, and I am confident that he will continue to hold the people 
of Colombia close and dear to his heart in his future endeavors.
  Ambassador Lleras received his juris doctor in law and social science 
from the Colegio Mayor de Nuestra Senora del Rosario. He received a 
diploma in civil cassation in 1960. By the time he was 24 years of age, 
Ambassador Lleras had already become a municipal judge and professor of 
economics at the Fundacion Universidad de Bogota Jorge Tadeo Lozano. 
One year later, in 1962, he had become professor of political science 
at the Universidad de America, and was also appointed dean of the 
faculty of natural resources at the Fundacion Universidad de Bogota 
Jorge Tadeo Lozano, a post he would hold for the ensuing 4 years. By 
1966, Ambassador Lleras had additionally been appointed academic dean, 
and given an honorary degree in agrology. Ambassador Lleras then went 
on to

[[Page E1275]]

lead the Universidad de Bogota Jorge Tadeo Lozano to excellence as 
their president from 1969 to 1972.
  In addition to Ambassador Lleras' impressive academic achievements, 
he has also pursued other fields of interest with the same tenacity. He 
has been the president of numerous organizations, such as the Edible 
Grase and Oil Producers Federation and the National Federation of 
Automobile Dealers. Ambassador Lleras has also been the honorary 
president of the Colombian Society of Business Administrators, 
president of the Advisory Committee of the Colombian Institute of 
Foreign Trade for the reform of the Andean Pact and a columnist for the 
``El Tiempo'' newspaper in Bogota. In 1993 he became cojudge for the 
Constitutional Court and within a year he was a precandidate for the 
Presidency of Colombia with the liberal party.
  Though the United States and Colombia have not always seen eye to 
eye, I am proud to say that we have worked together through these 
differences, and Ambassador Lleras has played a pivotal role in this 
dichotomy. Having spent several years in Colombia during the 1960's in 
the Peace Corps, I am reassured knowing that he will be returning to 
his wonderful and beautiful homeland, with a renewed interest in 
serving the people of Colombia. As Ambassador, he pulled together the 
Returned Peace Corps volunteers who have formed Friends of Colombia to 
begin a continued copartnership to help the Peace Corps spirit to 
flourish. During his tenure I have developed a close and strong liaison 
with Ambassador Lleras and I will not only be sad to see him leave on a 
personal level, but also for the sake of the Colombian people, whom he 
has so well served for the past 2 years.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join with me today in honoring 
Ambassador Lleras, a very rare and special individual who combines the 
best of both the academic and professional worlds. Throughout his life, 
and especially during the past 2 years, Ambassador Lleras has been 
committed to the ideals of leadership based upon the principle of 
compassion. Ambassador Lleras is a true public servant and will be 
dearly missed. I wish him well in his future endeavors.

                          ____________________