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Diplomats: Chile’s Bachelet to be new UN human rights chief

UNITED NATIONS — Secretary General Antonio Guterres has chosen Chile’s former president Michelle Bachelet to be the next UN human rights chief, a high-profile and often controversial job, diplomats said.

The new UN high commissioner for human rights must be confirmed by the 193-member UN General Assembly.

Bachelet has been a pioneer for women and women’s rights. She was the first female president of Chile, from 2006-2010, and was then tapped to be the first head of UN Women, which was created in July 2010 by the General Assembly to combine four UN bodies dealing with gender equality and the advancement of women under a single umbrella.

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In 2013, Bachelet returned to Chile to run for president again and was elected and served a second term from 2014-2018.

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