Historical Archives & Public Figures

Marvin Julian Miller

United States

1917 – 2012 (95 years old)

Transformational American labor union leader who headed the Major League Baseball Players Association from 1966 to 1982, abolishing baseball's century-old reserve clause and creating modern professional sports free agency.

New York City, United States

12 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

14

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George McGovern

George Stanley McGovern

United States

1922 – 2012 (90 years old)

U.S. Senator from South Dakota, decorated B-24 bomber pilot, and 1972 Democratic presidential nominee who campaigned courageously against the Vietnam War and dedicated his life to eradicating global hunger.

Washington, D.C., United States

14 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

38

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Norodom Sihanouk

នរោត្តម សីហនុ

Cambodia

1922-10-31 – 2012-10-15 (89 years old)

Secured Cambodian national independence without bloodshed in 1953 and acted as the vital unifier who restored the constitutional monarchy and peace after the Khmer Rouge genocide.

Beijing, China

38 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

10

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Arlen Specter

United States

1930 – 2012 (82 years old)

Fiercely independent Pennsylvania statesman who served thirty years in the U.S. Senate, authored the single-bullet theory for the Warren Commission, and chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Huntingdon Valley, United States

10 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

17

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Chadli Bendjedid

الشاذلي بن جديد

Algeria

1929 – 2012 (83 years old)

Third President of Algeria who governed from 1979 to 1992, modernized economic policy, and introduced multi-party democracy and freedom of the press through the historic 1989 Constitution.

Algiers, Algeria

17 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

12

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Meles Zenawi

መለስ ዜናዊ አስረስ

Ethiopia

1955 – 2012 (57 years old)

Prime Minister of Ethiopia from 1995 to 2012 who led the rebel overthrow of the Marxist Derg military dictatorship and steered Ethiopia through unprecedented double-digit economic expansion.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

12 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

14

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John Atta Mills

John Evans Fiifi Atta Mills

Ghana

1944 – 2012 (68 years old)

President of Ghana from 2009 to 2012, an esteemed tax law professor revered as 'Asomdweehene' (King of Peace) who solidified Ghana's reputation as a beacon of stable democracy in West Africa.

Accra, Ghana

14 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

12

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Yitzhak Shamir

יצחק שמיר

Belarus

1915 – 2012 (96 years old)

Seventh Prime Minister of Israel (1983–1984 and 1986–1992), underground commander of Lehi, and Mossad operative who led Israel during the Gulf War and the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference.

Jerusalem, Israel

12 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

14

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Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

نايف بن عبد العزيز آل سعود

Saudi Arabia

1934 – 2012 (77 years old)

Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia and powerful Minister of the Interior for thirty-seven years (1975–2012), who defeated the 2003–2006 Al-Qaeda insurgency in the Kingdom through security operations and psychological rehabilitation.

Mecca, Saudi Arabia

14 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

30

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Ahmed Ben Bella

أحمد بن بلة

Algeria

1916 – 2012 (95 years old)

Founding historic leader of the FLN, decorated WWII hero, and the first President of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria (1963–1965), celebrated for self-management socialism and anti-imperialist solidarity.

Algiers, Algeria

30 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

13

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Bingu wa Mutharika

Brightson Webster Ryson Thom

Malawi

1934 – 2012 (78 years old)

Third President of Malawi from 2004 to 2012 who defied international donor orthodoxies to launch fertilizer subsidies, transforming famine-stricken Malawi into a regional food exporter.

Thyolo, Malawi

13 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

13

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Miguel de la Madrid

Miguel de la Madrid Hurtado

Mexico

1934 – 2012 (77 years old)

President of Mexico from 1982 to 1988 who inherited a bankrupt economy, introduced market liberalization, joined the GATT, and led the nation through the catastrophic 1985 Mexico City earthquake.

Mexico City, Mexico

13 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

16

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Vitaly Vorotnikov

Виталий Иванович Воротников

Russia

1926 – 2012 (86 years old)

Prominent Soviet statesman who served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Russian SFSR (1983–1988) and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of Russia during Perestroika.

Moscow, Russia

16 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

16

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Abdelhamid Mehri

عبد الحميد مهري

Algeria

1926 – 2012 (85 years old)

Venerable Algerian statesman, Minister of North African Affairs in the GPRA, and FLN Secretary-General who transformed the ruling party into a democratic force and co-signed the 1995 Sant'Egidio Peace Platform.

Algiers, Algeria

16 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

33

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Václav Havel

Czech Republic

1936-10-05 – 2011-12-18 (75 years old)

Moral beacon who demonstrated how cultural dissent and ethical truth-telling can peacefully dismantle totalitarian tyranny; oversaw the bloodless 'Velvet Divorce' of Czechs and Slovaks.

Vlčice, Czech Republic

33 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

15

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Kim Jong-il

김정일

Russia

1941 – 2011 (70 years old)

Supreme Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea from 1994 to 2011 who instituted the Songun (military-first) doctrine and oversaw the development of the nation's nuclear weapons program.

Pyongyang, North Korea

15 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

18

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Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

سلطان بن عبد العزيز آل سعود

Saudi Arabia

1928 – 2011 (83 years old)

Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia from 2005 to 2011 and Minister of Defense and Aviation for nearly five decades, modernizing the Saudi armed forces and establishing major humanitarian foundations.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

18 Full Record →