Claudia Blum
Encyclopedia
Claudia Blum Capurro de Barberi (born August 9, 1948) is a Colombian psychologist and politician. A veteran Senator, she became the first woman to serve as President of the Senate of Colombia. She also served as the 26th Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations
..
, Colombia
on August 9, 1948 to Harold Blum Mejía and Liliam Capurro Borrero. She first went to school in Cali to the prestigious bilingual school Colegio Colombo Británico until her family moved to Boston
, United States
, where she finished her high school education. She returned to Colombia to study Psychology
at the University of Valle
and moved on to obtain her Masters
in Political Studies from the Pontifical Xavierian University
. She has also carried out advanced studies in negotiation and conflict resolution at the Harvard Law School
.
She grew up in a Conservative
leaning household but she quickly moved to the left as she became interested in politics and was influenced by the Liberal
politician Luis Carlos Galán
. In 1982 her father, Harold Blum Mejía was killed by the rebel forces FARC-EP which prompted most of her family to leave the country, she however chose to stay and continue her political aspirations.
She is married to the well-known businessman Francisco José Barberi Ospina CEO of Tecnoquímicas, the biggest pharmaceutical company of Colombia and one of the 50 biggest business groups of the country. Together they have two children Mauricio and Andrea Barberi Blum.
She began her political career as a councilor for the Municipality of Cali and in her two terms, the first one from 1984 to 1986 and the second one from 1990 to 1991, she developed her record for working for public spaces, culture, and the environment.
after the ratification of the Colombian Constitution of 1991
.
She became Vice President of the Fifth Commission of Congress in 1982, where she worked on creating the Ministry of the Environment and reorganized the work of State entities on the issue, as well as laws on energy, agriculture, and public services. She was also Vice President of the Commission of Legal Ethics, member of the Senate Commission for Peace, and starting in 1994, was a member of the First Commission, body which she presided over from mid-1999 to mid-2000.
As a legislator, Claudia Blum worked on important laws and constitutional reforms related to the modernization and transparency of the State, the search for peace, the strengthening of the justice system, the fight against illicit drug trafficking, the protection of the environment, and human rights issues, in particular victims of kidnapping, human trafficking and the rights of children.
Among the most important laws she authored or sponsored as a Senator in Colombia are: the reform to allow the application of extradition
as an international cooperation tool against organized crime; the new criminal code; the law for the pursuit and expropriation of assets
originating from illicit activities; the Justice and Peace legislation, which defines instruments for the demobilization
of members of illegally armed groups within the principles of truth, justice and reparation to victims; the anti-corruption Statute, which has allowed for a more effective penalization of abuses against public administration; the reform that included in the Constitution the possibility of a one-time Presidential reelection, which in turn led to the reelection of Álvaro Uribe Vélez; the national strategy law for the fight against human trafficking
; She also organized political debates on the state of education in the country, on actions to improve the attention given to victims of forced displacement due to violence, and on assessments to strengthen the electoral system in Colombia
.
, a centre-right
party which had supported President Uribe.
As President of the Senate, she led initiatives aimed at increasing public information on legislative work and citizen participation in the process of evaluating laws. She pushed forward the launching of a Congressional television station, as well as initiatives for the better use of technology in the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives
, projects for the modernization of the Congressional Library, and actions towards guaranteeing the safety and security of the Legislative branch
.
in New York City
. She was sworn in as Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations
on August 28, 2006 by President Uribe Vélez and presented her Letter of Credence
to UN Secretary-General
Kofi Annan
on September 11, 2006.
Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations
The Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations is the Chief of Mission of the delegation of Colombia, and highest permanent representative of the Government of Colombia to the United Nations...
..
Background
Claudia Blum Capurro was born in Santiago de CaliSantiago de Cali
Santiago de Cali , simply referred to as Cali, is a city in western Colombia and the capital of the Valle del Cauca Department. With a population of 2.5 million, Cali is the third largest city in the country. It has one of the fastest growing economies and infrastructure in the country because...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
on August 9, 1948 to Harold Blum Mejía and Liliam Capurro Borrero. She first went to school in Cali to the prestigious bilingual school Colegio Colombo Británico until her family moved to Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where she finished her high school education. She returned to Colombia to study Psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
at the University of Valle
University of Valle
The University of Valle , also called Univalle, is a public, departmental, coeducational, research university based primarily in the city of Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia. It is the largest higher education institution by student population in the southwest of the country, and the third in...
and moved on to obtain her Masters
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in Political Studies from the Pontifical Xavierian University
Pontifical Xavierian University
The Pontificia Universidad Javeriana is a private higher education institution founded in 1623. It is one of the oldest, most traditional, and prestigious Colombian universities, directed by the Society of Jesus, with its main facilities in Bogotá and a second campus in Cali...
. She has also carried out advanced studies in negotiation and conflict resolution at the Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
.
She grew up in a Conservative
Colombian Conservative Party
The Colombian Conservative Party , is a conservative political party in Colombia. The party was unofficially founded by a group of Revolutionary Commoners during the Revolutionary War for Independence from the Spanish Monarchy and later formally established during the Greater Colombia...
leaning household but she quickly moved to the left as she became interested in politics and was influenced by the Liberal
Colombian Liberal Party
The Colombian Liberal Party is a center-left party in Colombia that adheres to social democracy and social liberalism.The Party was founded in 1848 and, together with the Colombian Conservative Party, subsequently became one of the two main political forces in the country for over a century.After...
politician Luis Carlos Galán
Luis Carlos Galán
Luis Carlos Galán Sarmiento was a Colombian journalist and liberal politician who ran for the presidency of Colombia on two occasions, the first time representing the Liberal Party in 1982 which he lost to Belisario Betancur...
. In 1982 her father, Harold Blum Mejía was killed by the rebel forces FARC-EP which prompted most of her family to leave the country, she however chose to stay and continue her political aspirations.
She is married to the well-known businessman Francisco José Barberi Ospina CEO of Tecnoquímicas, the biggest pharmaceutical company of Colombia and one of the 50 biggest business groups of the country. Together they have two children Mauricio and Andrea Barberi Blum.
Career
Claudia Bloom worked in Cali as a journalist for the newspaper El Pueblo, she directed various cultural magazines and worked as a psychologist for the INEM Jorge Isaacs school. She was director of the art foundation Proartes, between 1984 and 1989, from where she revived and organized the International Art Festival of Cali and promoted public investment for the foundation.She began her political career as a councilor for the Municipality of Cali and in her two terms, the first one from 1984 to 1986 and the second one from 1990 to 1991, she developed her record for working for public spaces, culture, and the environment.
Senator
She was first elected Senator of Colombia for the New Democratic ForceNew Democratic Force
The New Democratic Force is a conservative political party in Colombia.At the last legislative elections, on 10 March 2002, the party won as one of the many small parties parliamentary representation....
after the ratification of the Colombian Constitution of 1991
Colombian Constitution of 1991
The Political Constitution of Colombia, better known as the Constitution of 1991, is the current governing document of the Republic of Colombia. Promulgated on July 4 of 1991 , it replaced the Constitution of 1886...
.
She became Vice President of the Fifth Commission of Congress in 1982, where she worked on creating the Ministry of the Environment and reorganized the work of State entities on the issue, as well as laws on energy, agriculture, and public services. She was also Vice President of the Commission of Legal Ethics, member of the Senate Commission for Peace, and starting in 1994, was a member of the First Commission, body which she presided over from mid-1999 to mid-2000.
As a legislator, Claudia Blum worked on important laws and constitutional reforms related to the modernization and transparency of the State, the search for peace, the strengthening of the justice system, the fight against illicit drug trafficking, the protection of the environment, and human rights issues, in particular victims of kidnapping, human trafficking and the rights of children.
Among the most important laws she authored or sponsored as a Senator in Colombia are: the reform to allow the application of extradition
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
as an international cooperation tool against organized crime; the new criminal code; the law for the pursuit and expropriation of assets
Confiscation
Confiscation, from the Latin confiscatio 'joining to the fiscus, i.e. transfer to the treasury' is a legal seizure without compensation by a government or other public authority...
originating from illicit activities; the Justice and Peace legislation, which defines instruments for the demobilization
Demobilization
Demobilization is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and military force will not be necessary...
of members of illegally armed groups within the principles of truth, justice and reparation to victims; the anti-corruption Statute, which has allowed for a more effective penalization of abuses against public administration; the reform that included in the Constitution the possibility of a one-time Presidential reelection, which in turn led to the reelection of Álvaro Uribe Vélez; the national strategy law for the fight against human trafficking
Human trafficking
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
; She also organized political debates on the state of education in the country, on actions to improve the attention given to victims of forced displacement due to violence, and on assessments to strengthen the electoral system in Colombia
Elections in Colombia
Elections in Colombia are regulated and controlled by the National Electoral Council which also gives information on elections and election results in for the politics of Colombia....
.
President of the Senate
Her Senate career reached its apex in 2005 when she became the first female President of the Senate of the Republic of Colombia, by now she was a member of the Radical ChangeRadical Change
Radical Change is a conservative liberal political party in Colombia.At the last legislative elections in Colombia on March 12, 2006, the party became one of the most important in the new congress, receiving 15 seats in the lower house and 20 in the upper house...
, a centre-right
Centre-right
The centre-right or center-right is a political term commonly used to describe or denote individuals, political parties, or organizations whose views stretch from the centre to the right on the left-right spectrum, excluding far right stances. Centre-right can also describe a coalition of centrist...
party which had supported President Uribe.
As President of the Senate, she led initiatives aimed at increasing public information on legislative work and citizen participation in the process of evaluating laws. She pushed forward the launching of a Congressional television station, as well as initiatives for the better use of technology in the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives
Chamber of Representatives of Colombia
The Chamber of Representatives is the lower house of the Congress of Colombia.The Chamber has 166 elected members for four-year terms.-How the Chamber is elected:...
, projects for the modernization of the Congressional Library, and actions towards guaranteeing the safety and security of the Legislative branch
Legislative Branch of Colombia
The Legislative Branch of Government in Colombia is one of the three branches of the government of Colombia under the Constitutional provision of separation of powers. The legislative branch of government is represented by the Congress of Colombia, which is formed by the Senate of Colombia and the...
.
Diplomat
In 2006, Claudia Blum left the Senate at the request of President Álvaro Uribe Vélez to head the Delegation of Colombia to the United NationsUnited Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. She was sworn in as Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations
Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations
The Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations is the Chief of Mission of the delegation of Colombia, and highest permanent representative of the Government of Colombia to the United Nations...
on August 28, 2006 by President Uribe Vélez and presented her Letter of Credence
Letter of Credence
A letter of credence is a formal letter usually sent by one head of state to another that formally grants diplomatic accreditation to a named individual to be their ambassador in the country of the head of state receiving the letter...
to UN Secretary-General
United Nations Secretary-General
The Secretary-General of the United Nations is the head of the Secretariat of the United Nations, one of the principal organs of the United Nations. The Secretary-General also acts as the de facto spokesperson and leader of the United Nations....
Kofi Annan
Kofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
on September 11, 2006.