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 When we speak of Prof. Luis Manuel Peluffo Cánepa,
it is hard to know which facets to underscore in a life of such
success and challenge: his work as a professor, engineer, or manager,
or his virtues as a person, father and friend. His humility, breadth
of vision, insatiable wish to innovate, wide-ranging knowledge, and
his intellectual clearness were captivating aspects of his style and
led to his participation at critical moments in the development of
telecommunications in Uruguay and in the establishment of the present
Inter-American Telecommunication Commission.
As a professor of telecommunications he had
different professorial positions in the Faculty of Engineering of the
University of the Eastern Republic of Uruguay and as Dean of the
Faculty of Engineering and Technologies of the Catholic University of
Uruguay.
As an engineer and manager in the Administration of
the Eastern Republic of Uruguay, not only did he support its
development, but also those of us who experienced the introduction of
computers and digitalization recall his presence as a technical
referent of that era.
As part of the transformation of CITEL, we recall
how, in the late 1980s, CITEL, the then-Inter-American
Telecommunication Conference, was undergoing a difficult time from a
financial standpoint. Extraordinary support was provided by the chairs
of COM/CITEL and different officials of the telecommunication
administrations, who offered their invaluable and generous assistance
to study its structure to be able to meet the needs of the Member
States, and to strengthening the Permanent Secretariat in order to be
able to offer additional services. Prof. Peluffo was one of the main
architects of the transformation of CITEL from Conference to
Commission, the establishment of an Executive Secretariat and the
introduction of Associate Members, drawn from the private sector, who
by annual payments began participating in the Consultative Committees.
As a telecommunication expert, it was possible in
recent years, to continue to enjoy Prof. Peluffo’s presence and advice
as a coordinator of the Catholic University of Uruguay with CITEL and
the International Telecommunication Union.
As to his human caliber, those of us who dealt with
him professionally, personally, or academically can attest to it. It
was a pleasure and privilege to work with him. His disciples are many
that have been marked by his clarity of objectives and the value he
brought to professional life. His friendship was a true delight. We
his friends felt that he touched our lives through his sense of
loyalty, honesty, and humor and, above all, his advice on the widest
array of topics, to which he could contribute the vital element that
achieved consensus-based results. He elicited broad respect and deep
affection, and could forge families wherever he was to be found.
For everything that was just said, and despite the
void his death has left, we wanted to include this small homage in his
memory, although we are sure that all who had the honor to know him
will continue to remember his tireless work towards human development
and also towards the promotion of the existence of adequate
telecommunications contributing to the development process in the
Region.
Professor Luis Manuel Peluffo Cánepa, died on
Friday, March 24, 2006 in Montevideo, Uruguay. This Secretariat wishes
to express its support for and most heartfelt condolences to his
family, colleagues, and friends.
Secretariat of CITEL
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In Memoriam: Professor
Luis Manuel Peluffo Cánepa
