Gabriel Becerra Yáñez (Latin American Spanish: [ɡaˈβɾjel beˈsera ˈʝaɲes]; born February 4, 1976, in Cúcuta, Colombia)[1] is a Colombian lawyer and politician, General Secretary of the Patriotic Union (UP) party, and manager of the Colombian Communist Party (PCC).[2] Since 2022, he has been a member of the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia for Bogotá, elected under the Historic Pact for Colombia coalition.[3][4]

Gabriel Becerra Yáñez

Member of the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia
In office
July 20, 2022 - present
Personal details
Born (1976-02-04) February 4, 1976 (age 48)
Cúcuta, Norte de Santander, Colombia
Political party Patriotic Union
Other political
affiliations
Colombian Communist Party
Alma materAutonomous University of Colombia
OccupationLawyer, politician
Websitegabobecerra.com
NicknameGabo Becerra

He was a student leader in the National Association of Secondary Students (Spanish: Asociación Nacional de Estudiantes de Secundaria, ANDES) and the Colombian Association of University Students (Spanish: Colombiana de Estudiantes Universitarios, ACEU).[5] In 2002, He was General Secretary of the Colombian Communist Youth (Spanish: Juventud Comunista Colombiana, JUCO).[5]

Life

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Family, education, and job

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Gabriel Becerra was born in Juan Atalaya in the city of Cúcuta, Norte de Santander. He is the second child of 4 siblings.[5] He is a graduate of the Juan Atalaya Integrated Departmental School with a bachelors in Industrial-Metalworking.[4] In the 90s, he moved to Bogotá, where he currently resides.

Becerra is a lawyer, receiving his law degree in 2009 and completing a major in Public Law in 2013 at the Autonomous University of Colombia.[3][4] He holds a Master's in Political Studies and International Relations from the University of the Rosary,[4] and as of 2021, he was a candidate for a Doctorate (PhD.) in Latin American Social Studies at the National University of Córdoba, Argentina.[3]

As of professional, he has been a legal advisor in the Regulatory Support Unit and Legislative Work Unit of the Council of Bogotá, the Colombian House of Representatives, and the Colombian Senate.[5][4]

He is a columnist in Semanario Voz, the PCC's newspaper, and a member of the editorial committee of Revista Taller.[5]

Political career

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He began his political activities as a student leader; in 1994, during his schooling, he was one of the founders of the National Association of Secondary Students (ANDES) and later in 1998, at University, he helped found the Colombian Association of University Students (ACEU).[5]

During his time as a student leader he began his involvement with the Colombian Communist Youth (JUCO), of which he became General Secretary of in 2002.[5] Then, he became Political Secretary of the District Committee of the Colombian Communist Party (PCC).[5][4]

As the manager of the PCC, he has promoted policies of alliance between the left-wing forces in Colombia, participating in the formation of coalitions like the Social and Political Front in 1999 and the Alternative Democratic Pole in 2005, where he was part of the national leadership team and its coordination of electoral campaigns.[5]

He was one of the leaders during the process of reorganizing of the Patriotic Union (UP) after its fifth Congress, held in November 2013, after the return of its legal status as a party.[5] At the 6th UP Congress, held in 2017, he was elected Secretary General.[4]

In 2019, together with Gustavo Petro and Aída Avella, he contributed to the Humane Colombia/Patriotic Union alliance, as an electoral political agreement.[5]

Representative in the Chamber

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In 2020, he was one of the founders and the coordinator of the promoting team that gave rise to the Historic Pact for Colombia,[5] a coalition that brought together left-wing parties and movements in Colombia for the Presidential and Legislative Elections of 2022. This alliance allowed for the victory of Gustavo Petro and Francia Márquez in the Presidential race.

In those elections, he was a candidate for the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia of Bogotá as a Historic Pact candidate, participating with the legal endorsement of the UP and support of the PCC.[6][2]He was eventually elected and took office on July 20, 2022.[7]

He is part of the First Constitutional Commission, the Special Commission for Surveillance and Monitoring of the Electoral Body, and the Peace Commission. Among other issues, his legislative agenda emphasizes university and educational reform, dignified work and the statute of labor, political reform for democratic openness, and peace.[8][4]

References

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  1. ^ "Quién es Gabriel Becerra Yáñez". La Silla Vacía (in Spanish). 13 March 2024. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  2. ^ a b "¿Quién es Gabo?" [Who is Gabo?]. gabobecerra.com (in Spanish). 2021. Archived from the original on 10 November 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "Gabriel Becerra Yañez". Universidad de los Andes de Colombia (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 22 July 2024. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h "H.R. Gabriel Becerra Yañez". Cámara De Representantes (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 19 April 2024. Retrieved 2024-08-14.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Cambia la historia, ¿Quién es Gabo?" [Change the story, Who is Gabo?] (PDF). gabobecerra.com (in Spanish). Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 October 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  6. ^ Becerra, Gabriel (20 July 2022). "Empezamos una nueva etapa de proceso de cambio. Dentro de la bancada del Pacto en representación de la Unión Patriótica con el apoyo del Partido Comunista" [We are beginning a new stage of the process of change. Within the Pact bench representing the Patriotic Union with the support of the Communist Party]. Facebook (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
  7. ^ Jaimes Osorio, Camilo Andrés (13 March 2022). "Los congresistas elegidos para la Cámara de Representantes por Bogotá 2022-2026" [The congresspeople elected for the Chamber of Representatives for Bogota 2022-2026]. RCN Radio (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 6 October 2022. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  8. ^ "A Quemarropa con Gabriel Becerra, candidato a la Cámara de Bogotá" [Point blank with Gabriel Becerra, candidate for the Bogota Chamber]. El Espectador (in Spanish). 11 March 2022. Archived from the original on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
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