By Hedelberto López Blanch on August 19, 2023
Gustavo Petro
The government of Colombian President Gustavo Petro has achieved in just one year advances in the political, economic and social fronts that the previous neoliberal regimes that preceded it could not obtain.
This has happened despite the constant campaigns against him by the wealthy forces of the Colombian right wing and the media that have tried to destabilize the progressive government that came to power on August 7, 2022 after winning at the polls with the support of the people.
Petro, since his arrival, has been committed to leaving behind a past of violence, injustice and discrimination by promoting peace talks with the National Liberation Army (ELN), which have made significant progress, an effort supported by Cuba, Venezuela and Norway as guarantor countries and the support of the United Nations.
In the past year, a direct fight against crime and drug trafficking was launched with the seizure of 1,100 tons of cocaine and the destruction of cocaine processing laboratories, an increase of 16% over the previous year.
As for violence, which has been a constant in this South American nation, 9,030 people from armed groups have been captured and homicide decreased 3.6% in the first half of this year compared to the same period in 2022.
Colombia has experienced intense activity in the international arena during the past year, participating with important delegations in various world events and with great political courage on the part of Petro, relations with Venezuela were reactivated, which reduced tensions on the common border and boosted trade between the two nations.
The economy has benefited and already in the first quarter of 2023 the Gross Domestic Product grew 1.4 % despite the propaganda of the right wing that predicted a financial catastrophe in that while investment reached 12 billion dollars in the 12 months of government.
The trade balance deficit, which is the result of higher imports than exports, went from 6 % during the previous administration to 4 % during the current one, which resulted in a revaluation of the peso against the dollar.
Official data indicate that inflation has been reduced to 12.13% and prices continue to fall as domestic production has increased.
Unemployment is another item that decreased to 9.3% in June, compared to 11.3% in the same month of the previous year. In this regard, 1,030,000 formal jobs were created and there was a nominal increase of 16% in the minimum wage.
With extensive efforts by the executive branch, a tax reform was approved that is making it possible to confront the country’s major tax evaders and to obtain resources from the most privileged strata of society.
Regarding land tenure, which the president assures that “the state has a great historical debt with the peasants due to an unequal distribution, already in the first seven months of his government more than one million hectares have been delivered to indigenous farmers, due to the strengthening of the National Land Agency compared to the 1.4 million delivered by his predecessor Iván Duque during four years of his administration.
During his electoral campaign, Petro raised three fundamental issues, health, labor and pensions, which had been the demands by the demonstrators who took to the streets on several occasions to protest against the neoliberal system exercised during the term of office of former president Duque.
Petro has continued to make great efforts to bring to a successful conclusion four important projects but has been unable to do so because he has a Congress with a majority of right-wing forces that oppose him.
These are the issues of health care, which is in the hands of large economic consortiums, and even members of the outgoing government have spoken out against any modification to the Health Security system that could benefit the majority.
Also the Pension Fund, which has become a business controlled by private companies, since the workers’ savings are in the hands of big capital, that rents them for its profits and leaves the salaried workers in an extremely precarious situation.
A third issue is the labor reform that should guarantee the right of employees to a greater stability of the social offer, and finally a law of Public Services to subsidize or decrease the still high prices that suffocate family economies, since they are controlled by private companies.
In any case, Petro has managed in the short time he has been in power to introduce much needed advances for a population that has been disadvantaged for many years.
Recently the president assured that he “will continue to insist” on labor, health, pension, education, public services and mining reforms. Let us hope he succeeds for the good of the Colombian people.
Hedelberto López Blanch is a Cuban journalist, writer and researcher.
Source: Rebelion, translation Resumen Latinoamericano – English