From Plaza de Bolívar in downtown Bogotá, accompanied by his cabinet, several of whom carried the"war to the death" flag, President Gustavo Petro, wearing a red T-shirt with the message"The people are sovereign, National Constituent Assembly," lashed out at the Donald Trump administration, which yesterday included him on the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List, published by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), also known as the Clinton List.

He began by speaking about the measure against him and members of his circle:"They put me on the OFAC list. They haven't given me a response; I've never given in to mafia-style proposals. That kind of attitude is typical of the Colombian mafia sleeping in Miami, with its allies on the far right."

"Mr. Trump has no idea who I am or what I've done," she said, adding,"He doesn't know who raised the crop and, on the other hand, who fought against drug trafficking."

The Colombian president insisted on his theory that a large part of the clash and the sanctions are due to the fact that there are people close to the US president who are against him and who are giving him erroneous information about his administration: "Mr. Trump, although these words don't reach you, they only reach you the words of the Colombian mafia. Mr. Trump is attacking the Colombian leader who has most opposed drug trafficking."

In his speech, he also attacked Colombian politicians and businessmen, whom he accused of being behind the decisions taken by the United States against him and his family."While they have defended their presidents in Mexico and Brazil, it was the other way around here. Businessmen and politicians went to motivate the American far right to impose sanctions on Colombia and its president. Those, Mr. Trump, who are your allies, are the Colombian mafia."

The president insisted that "we will not take a step back" and "we will not kneel."

Regarding the United States' economic and military aid to Colombia, President Petro said its sole purpose was to"control" the Attorney General's Office, the Police, and the Army. He even suggested it sought to undermine peace in Colombia, using the alleged entrapment of"Jesús Sántrich" as an example, even defending and excusing the alleged coordination of drug trafficking to the United States with the shipment of"poetry books."

He also mentioned an issue that he had already put aside, that of the Pegasus interception software, and related it to the sanction against him:"They are putting me on the OFAC list because I told the Colombian people that the CIA had paid for the Pegasus program to circumvent Colombian law."

The president emphasized that the people are sovereign and said that today they are "victims of mafia-like extortion" by the United States government and that the sanctions are "an attempt to overthrow him." "We are not going to respond to Trump in his own way; I am not like them. I have never engaged in mafia-like behavior, neither in Colombia nor in the world," insisted the head of state, who, toward the end of his speech, announced that he would not refer to his American counterpart again.

Petro claimed that "they hate him" for having been on a New York street at the United Nations General Assembly, demonstrating in support of Palestine, when he called on the United States Army to disobey Trump, an act that cost him his visa revoked.

“That's why they're punishing me today. And I mock the punishment,” Petro added, calling on the democratic forces of the United States and saying that “the time for freedom for all of America has come.” “No matter what they do to me, I have nothing to fear. I've never let greed enter my heart, and that's why the mafia has never been able to build an alliance with the new democratic force,” the president asserted, announcing that he will seek other alliances to replace the United States as the largest trading partner.

The so-called constituent

The president also waded into national politics, calling for the political forces of the past to not be allowed to return to power and, instead, for what he considers democratic forces to continue to govern. He then announced his intention to vote in the Historic Pact referendum this Sunday. As on other occasions, he insisted that like-minded people should be elected.

This point served as a bridge to move on to express his opinion on the call for a constituent assembly:"We say enough is enough, the proper response of a people is not to beg, we have already begged too much. The proper response is its own power (...) How is the sovereignty of the people exercised if not by exercising constituent power."

Contrary to what was implied by the proposal of his outgoing Minister of Justice, Eduardo Montealegre, President Petro emphasized that his proposal for a constituent assembly is designed to be processed in the next Congress and promoted by his successor.

Petro stated:"It is the new Congress elected by the people of Colombia that will hold, on July 20th of next year, the signatures and the bill drafted by the people, not by any minister, because we do not substitute the popular will. It will not be handed over to the current Congress, but to the new one, elected by the people."

As on previous occasions, he confirmed his interest in being part of this assembly and gave clues about the topics he would like to bring up there."We need to restore what the oligarchy took from the 1991 Constitution, restore what they took from education," the president expressed. The president has always been questioned about the reason why he proposes a constitutional instance to proceed with his social reforms, but this time he clarified his objective:"that the reforms be made with constituent power so that they cannot be repealed."

Petro limited the timeframe for his constituent assembly to three months and outlined the path for its convening, an issue that has been assumed as an attempt to mobilize his base during the 2026 electoral contest."We must elect a national committee of social forces that will organize the collection of signatures to set up posts where the population is to collect the number of signatures needed," said Petro, who added:"I will deliver those signatures to Congress."