Virginia Gamba (UN official)

Virginia Gamba is the United Nations Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict. She was appointed 12 April 2017 by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, to replace Leila Zerrougui.[1]

Virginia Gamba, Marcin Przydacz (2019)

Education

Gamba was educated in Bolivia, Peru, Switzerland, Spain and the United Kingdom. She is a graduate of the University College of Wales and the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. She holds a Master of Science degree in strategic studies and a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and American studies.[2]

Career

Early in her career, Gamba served as Director the Centre for Military Transformation of the Argentine Republic (1984–1986) as well as lecturer at the University of Maryland (1986) and King’s College London (1987–1990).

From 2001 to 2007, Gamba was Director of South-South Interactions at SaferAfrica. From 2007 to 2009, Gamba worked with the European Union as an Expert Consultant and helped develop the African Common Approach to Combat Illicit Small Arms Trafficking.

From 2009 to 2012, Gamba served as Deputy Director of Safety and Security at the Institute for Public Safety in Argentina’s Ministry of Justice and Human Rights.

From 2012 to 2015, Gamba held the position of Director and Deputy to the High Representative for Disarmament Affairs in the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA). She later served Head of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons-United Nations joint investigative Mechanism.

Other activities
  • Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, Member of the Board[3]

Recognition

Gamba shared the Nobel Peace Prize as formal member of the executive board of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs (1995) with Joseph Rotblat. She served on the Pugwash board from 1985–1996.

Controversy

As the UN Secretary General's special representative for children and armed conflict, Gamba met with SDF general commander Ferhat Abdi Şahin in Geneva on 29 June 2019 to sign an action plan agreeing to stop recruiting child soldiers and remove any currently fighting in its ranks. Turkish officials strongly condemned the signing of this "Action Plan" (without the knowledge of the UN members) with Abdi, who is on Turkey's most wanted list and has professed to serving in the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). This act also constitutes a clear breach by the UN of its own resolutions on terrorism according to the Turkish officials.[4] Gamba called the new agreement with the SDF an "important day" that "demonstrates a significant commitment by the SDF to ensure that no child is recruited and used by any entity operating under its umbrella".[5] SDF has been long known to recruit and use child soldiers between the ages of 11 and 18 in its ranks, which is recognised as a war crime.[6]

Notes
  1. "Secretary-General Appoints Virginia Gamba of Argentina Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict". United Nations.
  2. "Secretary-General Appoints Virginia Gamba of Argentina Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict". United Nations.
  3. Board Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children.
  4. "No: 192, 2 July 2019, Press Release Regarding UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict Virginia Gamba's Signing of an 'Action Plan' with the So-called 'Syrian Democratic Forces' Dominated by the PKK/PYD/YPG Terrorist Organization". 2019-07-02. Retrieved 2019-07-06.
  5. "SDF signs UN action plan to end use of child soldiers". 2019-07-02. Retrieved 2019-07-06.
  6. "Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (A/CONF.183/9)" (PDF). 1998. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 March 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2019.


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