Nilda Celia Garré (born November 3, 1945) is an Argentine

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

, and

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

. She was

Minister of Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

during the presidency of the late Nestor Kirchner and remained in this position, and as Minister of Security, under President

Cristina Fernández de Kirchner Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and former politician who served as the 56th president of Argentina from 2007 to 2015, and later as the 37th Vice ...

. She was the first woman in her country's history to serve in either office. She also served as the Argentine Representative to the OAS. She served numerous terms as a member of the

Argentine Chamber of Deputies The Chamber of Deputies (), officially the Honorable Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Nation, is the lower house of the Argentine National Congress (). It is made up of 257 national deputies who are elected in multi-member constituencies c ...

, the latest one from 2015 to 2019.

Early life and career

Garré was born in the

San Telmo San Telmo ("Saint Pedro González Telmo") is the oldest ''Barrios of Buenos Aires, barrio'' (neighborhood) of Buenos Aires, Argentina. A well-preserved area of the Argentine metropolis, it hosts some of its oldest buildings. One of the birthplace ...

barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city delimited by functional (e.g. residential, comm ...

'' of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, and earned a

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Some law degrees are professional degrees that are prerequisites or serve as preparation for legal careers. These generally include the Bachelor of Civil Law, Bachelor of Laws, an ...

from the

Universidad del Salvador The University of the Salvador (, also known for its acronym USAL) is a Jesuit university in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In addition to its campus in downtown Buenos Aires, it has instructional and research facilities in Pilar, San Miguel, Bahía B ...

when she was 22 years old. Her father, Raúl Garré, was a

Peronist Peronism, also known as justicialism, is an Argentine ideology and movement based on the ideas, doctrine and legacy of Juan Perón (1895–1974). It has been an influential movement in 20th- and 21st-century Argentine politics. Since 1946, Pe ...

member of the

Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires, officially the Buenos Aires Province, is the largest and most populous Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of the province an ...

Chamber of Deputies until the 1955 coup against President

Juan Perón Juan Domingo Perón (, , ; 8 October 1895 – 1 July 1974) was an Argentine military officer and Statesman (politician), statesman who served as the History of Argentina (1946-1955), 29th president of Argentina from 1946 to Revolución Libertad ...

in 1955. Elected in the March 1973 Peronist landslide, Garré became the youngest woman elected to Congress in Argentina to that date, and was among those on the flight that returned Perón to Argentina. She married Juan Manuel Abal Medina, who then was the

Secretary-General Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

of the

Justicialist Party The Justicialist Party (, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism. Following the 2023 presidential election, it has been the largest party in the opposition against President Javier Milei. Fo ...

, in 1973.

Legislative career

Following Perón's break with his party's left wing, Garré was among a group eight left-wing Peronists expelled from the Justicialist Party caucus in the Lower House in January 1974. She remained in Congress until its dissolution by the

military dictatorship A military dictatorship, or a military regime, is a type of dictatorship in which Power (social and political), power is held by one or more military officers. Military dictatorships are led by either a single military dictator, known as a Polit ...

installed during the

March 1976 coup March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 21 m ...

. Informed, as were most lawmakers, that leftist elected officials would be targeted for imprisonment or assassination, she sought refuge with her husband at the Mexican Embassy, where Abal Medina remained for the next six years. She later joined the

Center for Legal and Social Studies The Center for Legal and Social Studies (in Spanish: Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales; acronym: CELS) is an Argentine non-governmental organization based in Buenos Aires. It was founded in 1979 and it is oriented towards the promotion and defe ...

(CELS), a

legal aid Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right ...

foundation established in 1979 to defend the human rights of those targeted by the dictatorship and request

habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a legal procedure invoking the jurisdiction of a court to review the unlawful detention or imprisonment of an individual, and request the individual's custodian (usually a prison official) to ...

for these

political prisoners A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although ...

. Obtaining safe conduct in 1982, Abal Medina sought exile in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

and, after this separation, the couple were finally divorced. Garré became an ally of

Catamarca Province Catamarca () is a province of Argentina, located in the northwest of the country. The province had a population of 429,556 as per the , and covers an area of 102,602 km2. Its literacy rate is 95.5%. Neighbouring provinces are (clockwise, f ...

Senator Vicente Saadi and of Peronist Renewal leader Antonio Cafiero upon the return of democracy in elections in 1983. She was given a post in a National Automobile Registry office, but reentered politics after President

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronism, Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 200 ...

's turn to the right during the early 1990s. She joined Chacho Álvarez's leftist ''

Frente Grande The Broad Front (, FG) is a centre-left peronist political party in Argentina most prominent in the 1990s. The party is currently part of the former ruling Unión por la Patria coalition which supported Sergio Massa's presidential campaign. ...

'' (Broad Front) in 1993, and was returned to the Chamber of Deputies in 1995 on the FrePaSo list formed by the Broad Front and other progressive parties. She was named Deputy Interior Minister by Minister Federico Storani in October 2000. The government of President

Fernando de la Rúa Fernando de la Rúa (15 September 19379 July 2019) served as the President of Argentina from 1999 until his resignation in 2001. A member of the Radical Civic Union, he previously served as national senator for Buenos Aires across non-consecuti ...

of the

Radical Civic Union The Radical Civic Union (, UCR) is a major political party in Argentina. It has reached the national government on ten occasions, making it one of the most historically important parties in the country. Ideologically, the party has stood for r ...

, which was backed by FrePaSo in an

Alliance An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or sovereign state, states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an a ...

, was in crisis, however, and Garré resigned in protest over the appointment of conservative economist Ricardo López Murphy as Minister of Economy of Argentina in March 2001. She returned to the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

in 2001, serving until 2005. Garré served briefly as Ambassador to Venezuela in 2005, and helped organize demonstrations led by Venezuelan President

Hugo Chávez Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; ; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician, Bolivarian Revolution, revolutionary, and Officer (armed forces), military officer who served as the 52nd president of Venezuela from 1999 until De ...

at the 4th Summit of the Americas against U.S. President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

and the proposed

Free Trade Area of the Americas The Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA, , ALCA, Portuguese: ''Área de Livre Comércio das Américas'', ALCA, French: Zone de libre-échange des Amériques, ZLEA) was a proposed agreement to eliminate or reduce the trade barriers among all ...

Minister of defense and security

Garré was recalled to join the government of President

Néstor Kirchner Néstor Carlos Kirchner Ostoić (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the president of Argentina from 2003 to 2007. A member of the Justicialist Party, he previously served as Governor of Sa ...

Defense Minister A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

in November, becoming the first woman to hold that post in Argentina. She implemented numerous significant changes during her tenure, including policies promoting jointness (in the Argentine vernacular, ''conjuntez'') within the

Argentine Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic () are the combined armed forces of Argentina. It is controlled by the Commander-in-Chief (the President) and a civilian Minister of Defense. In addition to the Army, Navy and Air Force An air ...

and those emphasizing civilian leadership in national defense matters; until then each one of the armed forces had had a virtual autonomy on budget, procurement, organization and deployment. Garré was named to head the powerful new Ministry of Security, established in December 2010 by President

. The distribution of the '' Clarín'' and ''

La Nación ''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal ''Clarín (Argentine newspaper), Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argen ...

'' newspapers was blocked on March 27, 2011, and, according to one of these newspapers, the police did not act to prevent or stop this; the

Argentine Federal Police The Argentine Federal Police ( or PFA) is the national civil police force of the Argentine federal government. The PFA has detachments throughout the country. Until January 1, 2017, it also acted as the local law enforcement agency in the cap ...

operates under the aegis of the new Security Ministry. This was not the first time this had happened, and the government had already been enjoined by the judiciary to prevent further blockades. The

(the largest party in opposition in the

Argentine Senate The Honorable Senate of the Argentine Nation () is the upper house of the National Congress of Argentina. Overview The National Senate was established by the Argentine Confederation on July 29, 1854, pursuant to Articles 46 to 54 of the 185 ...

) proposed Garré's

impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...

following this incident, albeit unsuccessfully. Garré has also reaped criticism by officials in Buenos Aires Mayor

Mauricio Macri Mauricio Macri (; born 8 February 1959) is an Argentine businessman and politician who served as President of Argentina from 2015 to 2019. He has been the leader of the Republican Proposal (PRO) party since its founding in 2005. He previously ...

's administration for her decision to withdraw Federal Police officers from the city's hospitals, schools, subway stations, and other public places. Her successor at the Defense Ministry, Arturo Puricelli, was nominated by the president on May 30, 2013 to succeed her as Security Minister; she in turn was nominated as Argentine Representative to the

Organization of American States The Organization of American States (OAS or OEA; ; ; ) is an international organization founded on 30 April 1948 to promote cooperation among its member states within the Americas. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, the OAS is ...

. She resigned in 2015, when she was elected deputy for the Argentine Congress. Garré is one of numerous South American women who, around 2005, assumed leadership positions traditionally held by men. This group includes Chilean President

Michelle Bachelet Verónica Michelle Bachelet Jeria (; born 29 September 1951) is a Chilean politician who served as President of Chile from 2006 to 2010 and again from 2014 to 2018, becoming the first woman to hold the presidency. She was re-elected in December ...

and Garré's compatriot, Felisa Miceli, who served as Minister of Economy. This would later include Brazilian President

Dilma Rousseff Dilma Vana Rousseff (; born 14 December 1947) is a Brazilian economist and politician who served as the 36th president of Brazil from 2011 until her impeachment and removal from office on 31 August 2016. She is the only woman to have held the ...

and Argentine President Fernández de Kirchner.

References

External links

Ministerio de Seguridad
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garre, Nilda 1945 births Living people People from Buenos Aires Argentine people of French descent 20th-century Argentine lawyers Front for a Country in Solidarity politicians Justicialist Party politicians Defense ministers of Argentina Members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies elected in Buenos Aires Argentine deputies 2015–2017 Argentine deputies 2017–2019 Women members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies Montoneros Ambassadors of Argentina to Venezuela Permanent representatives of Argentina to the Organization of American States Broad Front (Argentina) politicians Female defence ministers Women government ministers of Argentina Argentine women ambassadors 20th-century Argentine women lawyers Argentine deputies 2003–2005 Argentine deputies 2001–2003 Fernández de Kirchner administration cabinet members Kirchner administration cabinet members