Isabel Fernández

María Isabel Fernández Suárez (born 10 March 1980) is a Bolivian journalist and politician who served as minister of communication in 2020. Fernández was the final official to serve in that post, with the Ministry of Communication being abolished during her term. She subsequently served as vice minister of communication for the remainder of the transitional government of Jeanine Áñez.

This article is about the Bolivian journalist and politician. For other uses, see Isabel Fernández (disambiguation) and María Fernández.
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Fernández and the second or maternal family name is Suárez.
Isabel Fernández
Vice Minister of Communication
In office
10 June 2020 – 6 November 2020
PresidentJeanine Áñez
MinisterYerko Núñez
Preceded byOffice established[lower-alpha 1]
Succeeded byGabriela Alcón
Minister of Communication
In office
28 January 2020 – 4 June 2020
PresidentJeanine Áñez
Preceded byRoxana Lizárraga
Succeeded byOffice abolished[lower-alpha 2]
Personal details
Born
María Isabel Fernández Suárez

(1980-03-10) 10 March 1980
Oruro, Bolivia
Alma materBolivian Catholic University (BComm)
King Juan Carlos University (MBA)
European Postgraduate Institute (MBA)
Occupation
  • Journalist
  • politician

Early life and career

Isabel Fernández was born on 10 March 1980 in Oruro. Fernández attended the Bolivian Catholic University, where she initially majored in medicine before switching to social communication, inspired by her mother's staff work for Radio Pío XII. After completing her degree, Fernández traveled to Madrid, Spain, where she completed two master's degrees in digital marketing at the King Juan Carlos University and the European Postgraduate Institute. Upon returning to Bolivia, Fernández entered the field of journalism, working on the staff of television journalists Carlos Mesa, Amalia Pando, and Mario Espinoza. After that, she worked as a journalist for a variety of media outlets —including the Bolivian Broadcasting Association (ATB) and UNITEL— for approximately sixteen years. Throughout her career, Fernández was an active correspondent during periods of intense social unrest; she likened the experience to "[being in] a lion's cage with a lion inside […] for me it was pure adrenaline […]".[1][2] Prior to serving as minister, Fernández served as the deputy press officer for UNITEL - La Paz from 2006 to 2020.[3]

Minister of Communication

On 28 January 2020, President Jeanine Áñez appointed Fernández minister of communication, replacing Roxana Lizárraga, who resigned days prior in protest of Áñez's decision to run for president rather than oversee a neutral transitional government.[4][5][6] Fernández remained as minister until 4 June, when the Áñez government announced its decision to abolish three ministries —communication, cultures, and sports— and two embassies in order to conserve public resources in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.[7] Áñez characterized these offices as "unnecessary charges", "absurd expenses", and "pure waste" generated by the previous government.[8]

Fernández at a press conference, 20 May 2020.

The functions of the abolished Ministry of Communication were transferred to the newly established Vice Ministry of Communication, a component of the Ministry of the Presidency. On 10 June, Minister of the Presidency Yerko Núñez appointed Fernández as vice minister of communication. Fernández committed herself to "[ensure] strict compliance with access to information, its transparent management, and freedom of expression" in her new post. She also assured that State media would not be used as an instrument of political pressure on journalists. In previous weeks, the government had been criticized after the Ministry of Government threatened repercussions if a journalist did not retract his allegations of irregularities in the purchase of chemical agents.[9]

With the dissolution of the Ministry of Communication came the termination of all officials who worked within it.[10] Upon assuming leadership over the Vice Ministry of Communication, Fernández announced that her department would only rehire "the people that are needed". She asserted that the now-abolished ministry held "too many officials", many of which were "not necessary" and spent their entire shifts without performing a single function.[11] On the other hand, some thirty former employees protested that they had been fired illegally despite enjoying job security or being guaranteed reinstatement. Others stated that they had not been paid their owed wages months after being fired.[12]

Fernández remained in office for the duration of the transitional government. She submitted her resignation on 6 November, two days prior to the inauguration of President-elect Luis Arce. In her letter of resignation, Fernández stated that "all these months were very complex, but the satisfaction of duty fulfilled with commitment and loyalty to […] the country remains".[13]

References

Notes
  1. Party herslef; as minister of communication.
  2. Partly herself; as vice minister of communication.

Footnotes
  1. "Una orureña en el gabinete de la Presidente Áñez". La Patria (in Spanish). Oruro. 29 January 2020. Archived from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  2. "Isabel Fernández fue atraída por la medicina, pero pudo más el periodismo, su pasión". Urgente.bo (in Spanish). La Paz. 10 May 2018. Archived from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  3. "Isabel Fernández" (in Spanish). La Paz: Ministry of Communication. Archived from the original on 11 May 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  4. "Isabel Fernández es la nueva Ministra de Comunicación". Página Siete (in Spanish). La Paz. 28 January 2020. Archived from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  5. Áñez Chávez, Jeanine (28 January 2020). "Decreto Presidencial N° 4141". gacetaoficialdebolivia.gob.bo (in Spanish). La Paz: Gaceta Oficial del Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia. Retrieved 9 April 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. Alanoca, Jesus (26 January 2020). "Roxana Lizárraga presenta su renuncia irrevocable al cargo de ministra de Comunicación". El Deber (in Spanish). Santa Cruz de la Sierra. Archived from the original on 10 April 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
  7. "Áñez cierra tres ministerios y dos embajadas; hay rechazo y críticas". Opinión (in Spanish). Cochabamba. 4 June 2020. Archived from the original on 10 April 2022. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  8. "Bolivia elimina tres ministerios y dos embajadas: destinará esos recursos a luchar contra el coronavirus". La Tercera (in Spanish). Santiago. Europa Press. 5 June 2020. Archived from the original on 19 December 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2022. Según Áñez, ha ordenado al gabinete ministerial una revisión "al detalle" de "todos los cargos innecesarios y todos los gastos absurdos que inventó el Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) y eran puro despilfarro".
  9. Corz, Carlos (10 June 2020). "Exministra Fernández asume como viceministra de Comunicación y promete velar por el acceso a la información". La Razón (in Spanish). La Paz. Archived from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2022. […] la nueva viceministra dijo que se compromete a 'velar por el estricto cumplimiento del acceso a la información, su manejo transparente, y la libertad de expresión'.
  10. Mamani Cayo, Yolanda (11 June 2020). "Comunicación cierra y parte de su personal sería recontratado". Página Siete (in Spanish). La Paz. Archived from the original on 9 January 2021. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  11. "Ministra Fernández: En Comunicación había mucha gente que no hacía nada". Página Siete (in Spanish). La Paz. 5 June 2020. Archived from the original on 29 June 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  12. "Destituidos de Comunicación exigen el pago de sus salarios". Página Siete (in Spanish). La Paz. 14 August 2020. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  13. "Al menos dos ministros y cinco viceministros de Jeanine Áñez ya presentaron su renuncia". UNITEL (in Spanish). Santa Cruz de la Sierra. 6 November 2020. Archived from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2022. 'Todos estos meses fueron muy complejos pero queda la satisfacción del deber cumplido con compromiso y lealtad a usted (Áñez) y al país”, señala parte de la carta de la viceministra de Comunicación, Isabel Fernández.
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