Rosalía Arteaga facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rosalía Arteaga
Arteaga in 2019
39th President of Ecuador
In office 9 February 1997 – 11 February 1997
Vice President	Vacant
Preceded by	Abdalá Bucaram Fabián Alarcón (acting)
Succeeded by	Fabián Alarcón
40th Vice President of Ecuador
In office 11 February 1997 – 30 March 1998
President	Fabián Alarcón
Preceded by	Herself
Succeeded by	Pedro Aguayo Cubillo
In office 10 August 1996 – 6 February 1997
President	Abdalá Bucaram
Preceded by	Eduardo Peña
Succeeded by	Herself
Personal details
Born	Lupe Rosalía Arteaga Serrano (1956-12-05) 5 December 1956 (age 68) Cuenca, Azuay, Ecuador
Political party	Independent Movement for an Authentic Republic (1995–2001)
Other political affiliations	Alfarista Radical Front (before 1995)
Spouse	Pedro Fernández de Córdova Álvarez (divorced)
Education	Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador University of Cuenca
Occupation	Lawyer politician writer

Rosalía Arteaga Serrano (born on December 5, 1956) is an important politician from Ecuador. She made history by becoming the 39th president of Ecuador for a short time in 1997. She was the first woman to be a head of state in her country.

Before becoming president, she served as the 40th vice president under President Abdalá Bucaram. After her brief time as president, she continued as vice president under President Fabián Alarcón until March 1998.

In 2021, Arteaga showed interest in becoming the Secretary-General of the United Nations. However, the current Secretary-General, António Guterres, was chosen for another term.

Growing Up and Learning

Rosalía Arteaga was born in Cuenca, Ecuador. She went to the University of Cuenca to study. She also studied at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador. She became a lawyer, a politician, and a writer.

Her Time in Politics

Becoming Vice President

In 1996, Rosalía Arteaga became the vice president of Ecuador. She served alongside President Abdalá Bucaram. However, they soon had disagreements. For example, when President Bucaram traveled in September 1996, he did not give her the power to act as president while he was away. These problems continued throughout Bucaram's time in office.

A Short Time as President

On February 6, 1997, the Congress decided that President Bucaram was no longer fit to lead the country. This led to a disagreement about who should become president next. Rosalía Arteaga, as vice president, believed she should take over. The leader of Congress, Fabián Alarcón, also wanted the role. The country's rules were not very clear on what should happen.

Initially, Alarcón was sworn in as president with the support of Congress. But on February 9, Arteaga was sworn in as Ecuador's first female president. This was a very important moment for women in leadership.

Back to Vice President

Just two days later, on February 11, 1997, Fabián Alarcón was sworn in again as president. He had the support of Congress and the army. Rosalía Arteaga then stepped down from the presidency and went back to her role as vice president. The political situation and unclear rules about who should take over made it difficult for her to stay as president.

Arteaga had previously said that Alarcón and Congress were planning to remove President Bucaram. Because of this, she and Alarcón did not get along. When Alarcón became interim president, he quickly removed many of Arteaga's responsibilities as vice president. Her role became mostly about attending events and supporting social programs.

Arteaga continued to speak out against Alarcón's government, saying it was not following the constitution. She often shared her concerns with international journalists. In March 1998, she decided to resign from her position as vice president. She felt that continuing in the role no longer made sense. After resigning, she ran for president in the elections held in May 1998, but she received only a small percentage of the votes.

After Her Presidency

After leaving her political roles in Ecuador, Rosalía Arteaga continued to be active in international organizations. She served as the secretary-general of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization until 2007. She is also a member of the group that helps create the Encyclopædia Britannica, which is a very famous encyclopedia.

Arteaga is involved in several groups that work for good causes and social fairness. She is the President of the Foundation for the Integration and Development of Latin America. She also started her own foundation, the Rosalia Arteaga Glocal Women Foundation. She is an Honorary Academician of the Royal European Academy of Doctors-Barcelona 1914 (RAED).

See also

In Spanish: Rosalía Arteaga para niños