Heraldo Muñoz | |
|---|---|
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| Foreign Affairs Minister of Chile | |
| In office March 11, 2014 – March 11, 2018 | |
| Appointed by | Michelle Bachelet |
| Preceded by | Alfredo Moreno Charme |
| Succeeded by | Roberto Ampuero |
| Permanent Representative of Chile to the United Nations | |
| In office 2003–2010 | |
| Appointed by | Ricardo Lagos |
| Preceded by | Juan Gabriel Valdés |
| Succeeded by | Octavio Errázuriz Guilisasti |
| Minister Secretary-General of Government | |
| In office January 7, 2002 – March 3, 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Claudio Huepe |
| Succeeded by | Francisco Vidal |
| Ambassador of Chile to Brazil | |
| In office 1994–1998 | |
| Appointed by | Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle |
| Succeeded by | Juan Martabit Scaff |
| Permanent Representative of Chile to theOrganization of American States | |
| In office 1990–1994 | |
| Appointed by | Patricio Aylwin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1948-07-22)July 22, 1948 (age 76) Santiago,Chile |
| Political party |
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| Alma mater | SUNY Oswego Universidad Católica de Chile University of Denver |
| Occupation | Diplomat, politician |
Heraldo Muñoz Valenzuela (born July 22, 1948) is aChileanpolitical scientist, academic, diplomat and politician; the formerMinister of Foreign Affairs of Chile under PresidentMichelle Bachelet; former Assistant Secretary General, Assistant Administrator, and Regional Director forLatin America and the Caribbean of theUnited Nations Development Programme; and the former ChileanAmbassador to theUnited Nations, toBrazil, and to theOrganization of American States.
Heraldo Muñoz was born inSantiago on July 22, 1948. After graduating fromLiceo de Aplicación, an all-boys public high school, he attended theUniversity of Chile where he studied English. After the first year, he left to major in political science at theState University of New York (SUNY), Oswego, thanks to a scholarship from theInstitute of International Education.
After gaining his B.A. at SUNY, he obtained a Diploma in international relations from theCatholic University of Chile (1975, graduated with honors), followed by a Masters (M.A.) and a Doctorate (Ph.D.) in international relations from theJosef Korbel School of International Studies at theUniversity of Denver, Colorado (1978). He was a doctoral fellow at theBrookings Institution, Washington, D.C. (1977), where he wrote his Ph.D. dissertation. He received fellowships fromResources for the Future, theFord Foundation, the Tinker Foundation, theTwentieth Century Fund, and theMacArthur Foundation.
Upon completion of his doctorate, Muñoz went back to Chile and returned to work as an academic at theUniversity of Chile's Institute of International Studies, having started there as professor in 1974.[1] He taught, researched and published extensively in the field of international relations in this period; and also founded and directed theProgram on Latin American Foreign Policies (PROSPEL), a foreign policy research institute which published annual reports on the foreign policies of Latin American governments (1984-1990).
In 1987, he co-founded Chile'sParty for Democracy (PPD), and participated in the Executive Committee of the "No" Campaign which defeatedAugusto Pinochet in the1988 plebiscite. Prior to that, he was a member of Chile's Socialist Party (1983-1986), and served as secretary of foreign relations and member of its central committee; he also ran as candidate for undersecretary general on a list headed byRicardo Lagos.
Once democracy returned to Chile, Muñoz was named Ambassador Permanent Representative for Chile to theOrganization of American States by PresidentPatricio Aylwin (1990-1994); during his mission, he sat on the Executive Committee of the Global Environmental Partnership with U.S. SenatorAl Gore.[2] During the administration ofEduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle, Muñoz served as Ambassador to Brazil (1994-1998); during this mission, he participated in negotiations to end hostilities between Peru and Ecuador. PresidentRicardo Lagos appointed Muñoz as Deputy Minister of Foreign Relations (March 2000); and in January 2002, as Minister Secretary General of Government. In 2003, Lagos named him Chile's Ambassador Permanent Representative to theUnited Nations.
When Muñoz became ambassador to the UN, Chile was a non-permanent member of theSecurity Council (2003-2004); hence, Muñoz served asSecurity Council President (January 2004), a position that is rotated monthly. While on the Council, Muñoz also presided the Al-Qaida/Taliban Sanctions Committee, traveling to countries like Afghanistan, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Iran, in line with Security Council resolutions, to supervise the implementation of arms embargoes, asset freezes, and travel bans of those groups.[3] In 2008, theNew York Times featured his life and work inThe Saturday Profile.[4]
In February 2009, Secretary-GeneralBan Ki-moon appointed him as head of aUN Commission of Inquiry to investigate the assassination of former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto, in response to a request made by Pakistani PresidentAsif Ali Zardari.[5] The report of the findings of the Commission, delivered in April 2010, resulted in the reopening of the case in the courts of Pakistan and the subsequent arrests of several high level individuals.[6]
Other positions Muñoz held while Ambassador to the UN were: chairman of thePeacebuilding Commission; facilitator of theSecurity Council reform consultations (2007-2008); Vice President of theGeneral Assembly's 61st Session (2006-2007); and member of theHuman Rights Commission reform consultations (today known as theHuman Rights Council).[7]
As Chairman of the Peacebuilding Commission, in 2009 he obtained a donation of the funds collected through author's rights from a new digital version ofJohn Lennon's song, "Give Peace a Chance" by his widow, artistYoko Ono.[8] Muñoz and Ono also collaborated in an initiative forAutism Speaks: Ono donated a work of art for an auction to benefit the efforts of that organization on the occasion of the United Nations Autism Awareness Day,[9] an event that was sponsored by the Mission of Chile to the UN in 2009.
In May 2010, Muñoz was appointed by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as Assistant Secretary General, Assistant Administrator, and Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of theUnited Nations Development Programme.[10]
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President Michelle Bachelet named him Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile in 2014.[11] As such, he led Chile in its response to a case presented byBolivia at theInternational Court of Justice, intended to force Chile to negotiate a sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean] for Bolivia[12] (seeBolivia v. Chile). Chile won the case by an overwhelming majority of the Court. Likewise during Muñoz's tenure, the Foreign Ministry elaborated aNational Action Plan for Human Rights and Business, which was presented to President Bachelet in 2017.[13]Also that year, Venezuela's political opposition to the government ofNicolás Maduro requested that Muñoz represent them, along with Foreign Minister of MexicoLuis Videgaray Caso, in negotiations held in theDominican Republic, to set conditions for the then upcoming presidential elections: these efforts were eventually unsuccessful due to the intransigence of Venezuelan authorities and disagreements within the opposition.[14] Furthermore, by invitation from the then USSecretary of StateJohn Kerry, Muñoz joined an international campaign to protect the ocean. As a result of this involvement, Chile turned 1.4 million square kilometers of its waters into marine protected areas, becoming a world leader in ocean protection. Muñoz also achieved -after many failed attempts by previous governments- congressional approval of the bill for the modernization of the Foreign Ministry; the bill was promulgated by President Bachelet on March 7, 2018. Muñoz also led the elaboration of an agenda for Chile's foreign policy of the future entitledPolítica Exterior 2030. Finally, Muñoz created and promoted the concept of "convergence in diversity" between the two integration mechanisms for the region, thePacific Alliance andMercosur.
In 2018 the Pew Charitable Foundation and theBertarelli Foundation named MuñozAmbassador of the Ocean.
In 2018, Muñoz was elected President of theParty for Democracy (PPD). His term ended in August 2021.
In September 2019 Muñoz was named Director of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation.[15]
Muñoz planned to run in the2021 Chilean presidential election, but ended up dropping out in May 2021.[16]
Other books written or edited by Muñoz are:
Duke University holds in the Rubenstein Library a collection of many of the documents of Heraldo Muñoz,A guide to the Heraldo Muñoz Papers, 1963-2013 and undated.[17]
Honors and Awards
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister Secretary-General of Government 2002 – 2003 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for Foreign Affairs 2014 – 2018 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | Permanent Representative of Chile to the United Nations 2003 – 2010 | Succeeded by |
