Published: Less than 10 min ago
On Sunday, the former left-wing rebel Gustavo Petro was sworn in as the new president of Colombia.
Petro, the country’s first president from the left flank, succeeds the unpopular conservative Iván Duque, who was barred from running for another term due to the country’s constitution.
By his side as vice president, Petro will have 40-year-old Francia Márquez, who will be the country’s first black woman in the post.
Speaking at a ceremony in Bogotá on Saturday night, Petro said his government will strive to “give Colombia something it hasn’t had in centuries – tranquility and peace”.
– Here begins a government that will fight for environmental justice, he added.
During his election campaign, Petro promised to raise taxes for the wealthiest, to invest in healthcare and education and to reform the police. He has also promised to end oil exploration, promote clean energy and restore diplomatic and commercial ties with Venezuela. Relations between the neighboring countries have been frozen since 2019, when then Colombian President Iván Duque refused to recognize the re-election of Venezuela’s embattled President Nicolás Maduro.