09/19/2020 - 13:26
Clarín.com
Politics
After his frustrated candidacy to preside over the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) - when President Donald Trump's candidate prevailed - and his specific weight within the Government has weakened with the preponderance of Cristina Fernández, the Secretary for Strategic Affairs, Gustavo Béliz, received an accolade from the Vatican: Pope Francis appointed him an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.
The Pontifical Academy of Sciences - which includes personalities of various nationalities - deals with the study of political, economic and legal problems from the perspective of the Social Doctrine of the Church.
Founded in 1994 by Pope John Paul II, its current chancellor is the Argentine Archbishop
Marcelo Sánchez Sorondo
, as well as the Academy of Sciences, and they have their headquarters in the beautiful Casina Pío IV, in the Vatican Gardens.
The appointment - effective from September 1 - was announced this Saturday by the Press Office of the Holy See and
does not demand to go live in Rome
.
The statement details that Béliz graduated in Law from the UBA and studied postgraduate studies at the London School of Economics;
that he was an official of the IDB and the Institute for the Integration of Latin America and the Caribbean (Intal);
Professor at the Austral University and Minister of Justice, Security and Human Rights.
It is also noted that Béliz is the author of numerous publications, especially on sustainable development, the future of work, artificial intelligence, democratic institutions and climate change.
But on the website of the academy there is a much more detailed curriculum of his academic background and his public career, in addition to the fact that he has
22 published books.
In February, Béliz participated in an academy seminar on finance and solidarity, during which he delivered a fiery speech in favor of the humanization of the economy.
There he warned that Latin America "shows that the theory of democratic spillover is not working" and that "our countries have been victims, not of the abundance of their natural resources, but of the curse of speculative financing."
The Minister of Economy, Martín Guzmán, and the head of the IMF, Kristalina Giorgieva, were also part of that meeting.
On the occasion, the Pope - quoting John Paul II - said that it is not morally lawful for foreign debts to be paid at the cost of unbearable sacrifices for the population, which was seen as an endorsement of President Alberto Fernández's argument for renegotiation of the Argentine debt.
The academy is autonomous and the number of its academics cannot be less than 20 nor more than 40. Chosen for their high level of competence in any of the various disciplines, they
are appointed by the Pope for 10 years
and may be reappointed by the pontiff after consultation with the president and the Council of the Academy.
Currently there are 21 and they come from 13 countries, without distinction of religion.
Before a
Clarín
query
about his appointment, Béliz said he felt "an immense emotion and gratitude, to humbly and responsibly serve the best known leader in the world today."
NE
Look also
Why does Argentina care so much about the IDB?
Election at the IDB: a multiple defeat for Argentina
