Jorge Taiana

Jorge Taiana
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Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship of Argentina
In office 1 December 2005 – 18 June 2010
President	Néstor Kirchner Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Preceded by	Rafael Bielsa
Succeeded by	Héctor Timerman
Personal details
Born	(1950-05-31) May 31, 1950 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Political party	Justicialist Party/Front for Victory
Spouse(s)	Bernarda Llorente
Alma mater	Latin American Social Science Institute

Jorge Enrique Taiana (born May 31, 1950) is an Argentine Justicialist Party politician, formerly Foreign Minister (canciller) in the administrations of President Néstor Kirchner and his successor, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. His father was Jorge Alberto Taiana, colleague and physician of former President Juan Perón.

Biography

Education and imprisonment

Jorge Taiana was born in Buenos Aires as the fourth and second youngest child of Matilde Puebla and Jorge Alberto Taiana. His father was a prominent Argentine surgeon who later served in a number of social policy posts for President Juan Perón, as well as one of his personal physicians. He attended the Colegio Nacional de Buenos Aires, studied sociology, and was awarded a Master's Degree in Social Sciences at the Latin American Social Science Institute (FLACSO). He was later a researcher at the National University of Quilmes and worked in the field of human rights. Taiana is married to Telefe producer Bernarda Llorente; he has three children, two by a previous marriage.

Taiana was a militant Peronist in the early 1970s and in 1973 re-launched Descamisado, a populist news weekly thereafter associated with the Montoneros guerilla movement. He worked alongside his father in the Ministry of Education as Head of Cabinet following the return of Peronism to power in 1973, and despite being threatened by the Triple A, he decided to remain in the country. He was imprisoned in 1975 and spent seven years in jail without trial, mostly in a military prison in Rawson.

Political career

Following his release, Taiana held several academic positions until he was appointed Advisor to the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies (1987–89). He was appointed Undersecretary for Organizations and Special Matters after the election of fellow Peronist Carlos Menem in 1989, and in 1990 was appointed Undersecretary for Foreign Policy and later Director of International Organizations (1991). Between 1992 and 1995, he was the Argentine Ambassador to Guatemala and concurrently to Belize. After wide regional support to his candidature, he served as Executive Secretary of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the OAS between 1996 and 2001, and then became Secretary for Human Rights of the Government of the Province of Buenos Aires.

President Kirchner appointed Taiana as Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship in December 2005, replacing Rafael Bielsa; Taiana had been Bielsa's Deputy since 2003. As Foreign Minister, Taiana has presided over the United Nations Security Council and to dealt with issues such as the Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute, the paper mill dispute with Uruguay and the accession of Venezuela to Mercosur, among many other matters of Argentine foreign policy. He was confirmed as Foreign Minister by Cristina Fernández de Kirchner on her inaugural on December 10, 2007.

He resigned his post on June 18, 2010, citing "lack of support and differences" with the President. He remained generally supportive of her administration, however, and in September was nominated to head the Front for Victory party list for the Buenos Aires City Legislature.

See also

• Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship
• List of Foreign Ministers of Argentina
• Government of Argentina