The Ministry of Foreign Affairs requested this Friday not to grant precautionary measures to the suspended mayor of Medellín, Daniel Quintero. Through a concept delivered to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), this portfolio He reaffirmed his support for the Attorney General’s Office and maintained that the local president has enjoyed guarantees in the process in which he is immersed.
As it became known last Tuesday, May 31, that body had requested a concept from the Colombian State in the midst of the investigation it is carrying out for the suspension of the mayor, who was removed from office on May 10 for his alleged participation in politics. in favor of Gustavo Petro.
Through a letter sent to the Foreign Ministry, the Commission had requested “information on the security scheme that” Quintero would have and “specify details on the actions adopted regarding the suspension measure applied” once morest him.
At this Friday’s meeting, Vice President and Foreign Minister Marta Lucía Ramírez maintained that the Attorney General’s Office It would have full power to discipline public servants, including those who were elected by popular vote.
Referring to the fact that Quintero was also suspended along with four other officials for the same reasons, the Foreign Ministry stated that there would be no politically motivated persecution.
Likewise, it was suggested that the granting of precautionary measures in their favor might weaken the work of control of public officials.
“The Delegation of Colombia emphasized that the promotion of the guarantee of political rights, in which the Colombian State has always been committed, it cannot mean the weakening of the institutional design, nor of the existing legal framework in the country and in the region, to advance the effective and transparent control of the public functionas an essential condition to guarantee democratic solidity and the consequent respect and promotion of human rights,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a press release.
Likewise, that portfolio referred to the security threats denounced by Quintero before the IACHR, noting that the president has “one of the highest level personal protection schemes assigned by the UNP” and has enjoyed guarantees to exercise his position. .
The Foreign Ministry’s response comes following the mayor of Medellín went to the IACHR offices in Washington denouncing an alleged persecution once morest him and asking for measures to annul the Attorney General’s decision.
“Here the important thing in any case is to understand that the disciplinary control function that the Attorney General’s Office has is a function that the State needs. It is not only if the officials commit a criminal offense, the disciplinary offenses are also serious and the Attorney General’s Office must be able to investigate any official at any time”, Vice President Ramírez had raised this week.
