Héctor Timerman
| Héctor Timerman | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office June 18, 2010 | |
| President | Cristina Fernández de Kirchner |
| Preceded by | Jorge Taiana |
| Argentine Ambassador to the United States | |
| In office December 10, 2007 – June 18, 2010 | |
| President | Cristina Fernández de Kirchner |
| Preceded by | José Octavio Bordón |
| Succeeded by | Alfredo Chiaradía |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Héctor Marcos Timerman December 16, 1953 Buenos Aires |
| Nationality |  Argentina |
| Spouse(s) | Annabella Selecki |
| Religion | Judaism |
Héctor Marcos Timerman (born December 16, 1953) is a Jewish- Argentine journalist, sociologist, political and human rights activist, diplomat, and current Argentine Minister of Foreign Relations.[1]
Life and times
Timerman was born in Buenos Aires to Risha (née Mindlin) and Jacobo Timerman.[2]
He was named editor-in-chief of La Tarde in 1976, and steered the daily in support of the newly installed dictatorship. His father's April 15, 1977, kidnapping prompted Héctor Timerman to become active in the defense of human rights, however, and in 1978, was exiled in New York, where, in 1981, he co-founded Americas Watch, the western hemisphere chapter of Human Rights Watch. He later served in the board of directors of the Fund for Free Expression, a press freedom advocacy group based in London.
Timerman earned a master's degree in international relations at Columbia University in 1981, and wrote extensively as a columnist for the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Newsweek, and The Nation. Returning to Argentina in 1989, he founded two news magazines, Tres Puntos and Debate, and became a regular contributor to Noticias and Ámbito Financiero. He also hosted a television news interview program, Diálogos con Opinión. Timerman was an early adherent to Congresswoman Elisa Carrió's center-left ARI. Following elections in 2003, however, he became a close supporter of President Néstor Kirchner.
Timerman remained active in human rights advocacy. He served as a director of the Buenos Aires office of the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights from 2002 to 2004, and was President of the International Coalition of Historic Site Museums of Conscience. Timerman was the first witness to give testimony in the trial of Christian von Wernich, a former Buenos Aires Province Police chaplain convicted of complicity in numerous dictatorship-era murders and tortures (including that of his father).
President Kirchner appointed Timerman Consul General in New York in July 2004, and in December 2007, he was named Argentine Ambassador to the United States. Differences between President Cristina Kirchner and Foreign Relations Minister Jorge Taiana, and an incident in which she called his loyalty into question reportedly led to Taiana's June 18, 2010 resignation;[3] his replacement by Héctor Timerman was announced the same day.[4]
In 2011, he penned a letter to his Bolivian counterpart that was diplomatically correct, but strongly worded. Timerman expressed it was a "grave incident" that the Iranian Defence Secretary Mr. Ahmad Vahidi was given a State Visit to Bolivia, whereas Argentina considers Mr Vahidi to be a wanted suspect. Vahidi left the country. In 2012, he expressed that Prince William's RAF search and rescue uniform during his service on the Falkland Islands was "that of a conqueror".[5]
In 2013 Timerman walked away from a member of the Falkland Islands parliament and refused to accept a letter.[6] Timerman claimed "We have been trying to find a peaceful solution for 180 years. I think the fanatics are not in Buenos Aires" despite Argentina invading the Falkland Islands in 1982.[7]
References
- ↑ "Argentina names envoy to US as foreign minister | World news". The Guardian. 2010-06-19. Retrieved 2013-02-01.
- ↑ "Hispanic writers: a selection of sketches from Contemporary authors - Bryan Ryan". Books.google.ca. Retrieved 2013-02-01.
- ↑ "Una frase de Cristina molestó a Taiana y lo llevó a presentar la renuncia" (in Spanish). Clarin.com. 2010-06-18. Retrieved 2013-02-01.
- ↑ "Argentine Foreign Minister Taiana in shock resignation". BBC News. 2010-06-18. Retrieved 2013-02-01.
- ↑ "Prince William leaves for the Falklands Wednesday night from Brize Norton". En.mercopress.com. Retrieved 2013-02-01.
- ↑ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/falklandislands/9851070/Argentinas-foreign-minister-refuses-to-speak-to-Falkland-Islander.html
- ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21341578
External links
- The Nation: Héctor Timerman
- La Nación: Un kirchnerista fiel, al palacio San Martín (Spanish)
- Clarín: Timerman será el nuevo canciller (Spanish)
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