Ana Elena Townsend Diez Canseco is a

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

vian

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and former member of the

Peruvian Congress The Congress of the Republic of Peru ( es, Congreso de la República) is the unicameral body that assumes legislative power in Peru. Congress' composition is established by Chapter I of Title IV of the Constitution of Peru. Congress is compose ...

. She is the daughter of Andrés Townsend, who was formerly the Speaker of the Peruvian Chamber of Deputies, and prominent Senator who founded the Latin American Parliament in 1964.

Professional career

Townsend was elected to Congress in 1995 as a guest member on the candidate list presented by Ambassador

Javier Pérez de Cuéllar Javier Felipe Ricardo Pérez de Cuéllar de la Guerra (; ; 19 January 1920 – 4 March 2020) was a Peruvian diplomat and politician who served as the fifth Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1982 to 1991. He later served as Prime Mini ...

. Townsend was again reelected in 2000 and in 2001. In 2001, as part of

Alejandro Toledo Alejandro Celestino Toledo Manrique (; born 28 March 1946) is a Peruvian politician who served President of Peru, from 2001 to 2006. He gained international prominence after leading the opposition against president Alberto Fujimori, who held ...

´s political party she obtained the highest vote count of all elected representatives. In total, she served in the Peruvian legislature from 1995 to 2006. In 2003 President Alejandro Toledo nominated her as Minister of Women's Affairs and Social Development.

Legislative work

Her legislative work focused on

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

, anticorruption, transparency, and gender issues. Further, she chaired a committee charged with investigating the corruption of

Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...

´s Presidency. Notably, she was the author of the first ''Law of Access to Information in Peru''.

Present activities

Currently, Townsend is a member of a number of issues-based multi-national organizations. She is involved with the Advisory Council of the

Latin American Parliament The Latin American Parliament (''Parlatino'') is a regional, permanent organization composed by the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. It is a consultative assembly similar to the early European Parliament. Currently the institution ...

, which gathers 22 legislative bodies from Latin America and the Caribbean and also participates in the Advisory Council of Vital Voices for a Global Partnership in Washington DC which is a non profit organization chaired by Senator

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

and

Kay Bailey Hutchison Kay Bailey Hutchison (born Kathryn Ann Bailey; July 22, 1943) is an American attorney, television correspondent, politician, diplomat, and was the 22nd United States Permanent Representative to NATO from 2017 until 2021. A member of the Republi ...

that promotes female involvement in global leadership. Additionally, she works as an international consultant in governance, gender, and anticorruption matters in Washington DC, USA. Anel Townsend has authored three books: ''In the Name of Law'', a compilation of her parliamentarian speeches; ''The Strengthening of Political Parties in Latin America''; and lastly, ''For a World Without Poverty and Inequality: The role of the Latin American Parliamentarians in the implementation of Millennium Development Goals''.

External links

Website for Anel Townsend (Spanish)
Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Peruvian democracy activists Peruvian people of English descent Peruvian people of Spanish descent Government ministers of Peru Members of the Congress of the Republic of Peru Women government ministers of Peru Women members of the Congress of the Republic of Peru Diez Canseco family {{Peru-politician-stub