The diplomat was awarded the Medal of the Grand Officer Order from The Chamber of Mines of Peru.
An emotional moment was experienced this morning at the National University of Engineering (UNI) when Ambassador Edgardo de Habich received a special award from The Chamber of Mines of Peru.
Edgardo de Habich y Palacio, outstanding diplomat and writer, was awarded the Medal of the Grand Officer Order from The Chamber of Mines of Peru for his long professional career both in diplomacy and literature. The award was made during the inauguration of the 2nd International Mining Congress GEOMET 2016, organized by the Chamber of Mines of Peru at the ‘Gran Teatro’ (Grand Theater) of UNI until Friday 14.
The grandson of the founder of UNI visited the museum named in honor of his grandfather, engineer Eduardo de Habich Mauersberger, who was also the first chancellor of the educational institution.
After receiving the award, the ambassador was given a guided tour of the “Eduardo de Habich” museum, which has important art exhibits such as paintings, sculptures and archaeological pieces, as well as the desk where the founder of UNI used to work and several of the engineering instruments he imported from Europe at the end of the 19th century. The visit was led by Engineer César Gallardo Vela, CEO of The Chamber of Mines of Peru; Dr. Jorge Alva Hurtado, the chancellor of UNI; and Engineer Guido Del Castillo, president of the Board of Trustees of UNI.
“It is a great honor for me to receive this medal from The Chamber of Mines of Peru and to be able to visit the university that my grandfather founded. It is really moving to be here, in this museum, to recognize myself in his portrait and to be able to see how he worked. My grandfather was a great man. Despite being Polish, he dedicated a great part of his life and efforts to Peru,” said the awarded ambassador, who donated five medals that belonged to the first chancellor of UNI to the museum.
For his part, Engineer César Gallardo Vela, CEO of The Chamber of Mines of Peru, said, “The medal awarded to the ambassador is a way of recognizing his broad and prolific career always linked to culture and to building values for a better society. It is a great honor for us to be able to award Ambassador De Habich.”
Ambassador De Habich was accompanied by Engineer César Gallardo, CEO of The Chamber of Mines of Peru; Dr. Jorge Alva Hurtado, the chancellor of UNI; the Congressman Clayton Galván; Lic. César Campos, president of the Advisory Council of The Chamber of Mines of Peru; Lic. Luis Iberico Núñez, ambassador and former president of the Advisory Council of The Chamber of Mines of Peru; mining entrepreneur Guido Del Castillo; Countess Isabel de Mauléon de Bruyères, among other personalities.
The awarded ambassador Edgardo de Habich y Palacio has shared literature with his profession for more than 50 years. He has published several short stories, novels, chronicles and even two of his plays won the National Theater Award: ‘Eróstrato’ (Herostratus, 1961) and ‘Menos grande que la Luna’ (Less big than the Moon, 1963).
In 2005 he published his most recent work: the collection of poems El ‘Azor Herido’ (The Wounded Goshawk). The following year, he received the Casona Prize awarded by the Cultural Center of the San Marcos University for his artistic and personal merits.
Before being appointed ambassador, De Habich carried out diplomatic assignments in Japan, Denmark, India, Bolivia and the former Soviet Union. Once appointed ambassador, he represented Peru in Algeria, Cuba and Greece. He has received several awards for his diplomatic services from the governments of Peru (Merit for Distinguished Services), Japan (the order of the Sacred Treasure of the Dragon), Denmark and Greece (Grand Cross of the Order of the Phoenix).
