Right-wing presidential candidate Abelardo “El Tigre” de la Espriella emerged as the frontrunner in Colombia’s presidential election on Sunday, setting up a high-stakes runoff against left-wing senator Iván Cepeda in a contest that could reshape the political future of one of Latin America’s largest economies.

With more than 97% of ballots counted, National Registry Bulletin No. 15 showed De la Espriella leading with 43.77% of the vote, or approximately 10.1 million ballots, compared with Cepeda’s 40.88%, or slightly above 9.4 million votes. The margin of roughly 667,000 votes exceeded many pre-election forecasts and positioned the Barranquilla-based criminal defense lawyer as the favorite heading into the decisive June 21 runoff.

Election authorities reported that voting unfolded peacefully across the country, with preliminary results available just 90 minutes after polling stations closed at 4:00 p.m. More than 41 million Colombians had been eligible to participate in the election, including 1.4 million citizens residing abroad.

The result represents a significant rebuke to President Gustavo Petro’s political project and highlights growing voter concerns over security, economic performance and public confidence in state institutions.

Petro, who is constitutionally barred from seeking re-election, has thrown his support behind Cepeda, a leading figure within the governing coalition and one of the principal defenders of the government’s controversial “Total Peace” strategy. The policy sought negotiated settlements with FARC dissidents, criminal organizations and other armed groups operating throughout the country, but critics argue it failed to reduce violence in many regions.

While Cepeda entered election day as the favorite in most opinion polls, De la Espriella successfully capitalized on public frustration over extortion, insecurity, illegal armed groups and what many voters perceive as a deterioration of public order under Petro’s administration.

Known to supporters as “El Tigre,” De la Espriella built his campaign around a tough-on-crime platform inspired in part by the security policies of El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele. He has promised to strengthen the military, restore state authority in conflict-affected regions and confront criminal organizations with what he describes as an uncompromising approach.

His message appears to have resonated particularly among middle-class voters, business sectors and residents of regions heavily impacted by drug trafficking and armed violence.

The election also exposed the weakness of Colombia’s political center, which for years attempted to position itself as an alternative to the country’s increasingly polarized political landscape.

Conservative candidate Paloma Valencia secured more than 1.5 million votes (or 6.9%) but remained well behind the two frontrunners. Although her campaign attracted traditional conservatives and followers of former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez, she struggled to expand beyond the party’s core support base.

Centrist Sergio Fajardo, the former mayor of Medellín and former governor of Antioquia, won just 4.6% of the vote, just shy of one million ballots. Once regarded as a politician capable of bridging Colombia’s ideological divides, Fajardo failed in his third attempt to reach the presidency as voters increasingly gravitated toward candidates offering sharply contrasting visions for the country’s future.

Former Bogotá mayor Claudia López suffered one of the day’s most dramatic defeats, capturing less than 1% of the national vote. The result marked a stunning collapse for a politician who only a few years ago was considered among Colombia’s most vocal leaders.

Analysts say the runoff campaign is now likely to become a referendum on Petro’s presidency and the future direction of the country.

For Cepeda’s supporters, the June 21 vote offers an opportunity to preserve and deepen many of the social and political reforms promoted by the current administration. For De la Espriella’s backers, it represents a chance to reverse those policies and return to a security-centered model associated with the administrations of former president Álvaro Uribe.

The key question over the coming weeks will be whether De la Espriella can consolidate support among conservative and independent voters while Cepeda seeks to unite the left and attract Colombians wary of a return to hardline security policies.

After a largely peaceful election day, Colombia now faces three weeks of intense campaigning before voters make what many observers consider one of the most consequential political decisions since the country’s historic shift to the left in 2022.

Much of Colombia woke up to temperate weather and clear skies over the capital, Bogotá. As lines began to form outside polling stations when they opened at 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, voters cast their ballots in one of the country’s most closely watched presidential elections in decades, a contest that could redefine the political direction of the South American nation at a time of mounting security concerns and economic uncertainty.

In Bogotá, outside Corferias, the country’s largest exhibition and convention center and one of Colombia’s busiest voting locations, queues of unregistered voters formed well before polling stations officially opened.

According to the National Registry Office, more than 41 million Colombians are eligible to vote in the election, including approximately 1.4 million citizens residing abroad. Polling stations are under tight security nationwide and will remain open until 4:00 p.m. local time.

The 2026 election has been overshadowed by a resurgence of political violence, recalling memories of some of the country’s darkest electoral periods. Authorities have heightened security measures following a tense campaign season marked by threats against candidates, concerns over public safety, and growing polarization between the political left and right.

President Gustavo Petro, who is constitutionally barred from seeking re-election, has thrown his support behind left-wing senator Iván Cepeda, 63, who is widely regarded as the architect of the government’s failed “Total Peace” strategy aimed at negotiating disarmament agreements with FARC dissidents and other illegal armed groups.

President Petro cast his vote at 9:10 am from the Plazoleta Mosquera inside the National Capitol.

Opinion polls have placed Cepeda in first place with support ranging between 33% and 40%, making him the clear favorite to advance to a second-round runoff scheduled for June 21 should no candidate secure an outright majority of 50% plus one vote on Sunday.

Cepeda, of the ruling Historic Pact coalition, is facing two formidable opponents to his Marxist agenda: right-wing senator Paloma Valencia, 48, of the Centro Democrático party, and criminal defense lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella, 47, considered the “outsider” in the race, whose rapid rise has become one of the defining stories of the campaign.

Valencia and De la Espriella both embrace the “democratic security” doctrine associated with former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez, whose two administrations between 2002 and 2010 were defined by an aggressive military campaign against the FARC and ELN guerrillas.

De la Espriella, known among supporters as “The Tiger,” has portrayed himself as a political outsider capable of restoring economic growth and defeating criminal organizations. His campaign has gained momentum through a pro-Bukele message, fueled by a strong social media presence and rhetoric that resonates with middle-class Colombians on the Caribbean coast who are frustrated by extortion, insecurity, and the traditional political establishment.

The political capital of  Sergio Fajardo and Claudia López appears to be spent, as the race has increasingly evolved into a contest between three candidates. The self-professed centrists and former mayors – one from Medellín (Fajardo) and other from Bogotá (López) — have consistently polled in the single digits, but on Sunday, their political relevance could evaporate a quickly with the final tally.

Sunday’s vote is unlikely to produce an outright winner, making a runoff between Cepeda and one of his conservative challengers the most probable outcome.

The key uncertainty is whether Valencia’s established party machinery and her effort to capture the undecided centre by naming Juan Daniel Oviedo as her running mate will push her beyond the six million votes she received in the March primaries.

Should Valencia outperform polling forecasts, De la Espriella will be forced on Monday to convince his supporters to back Uribe’s official candidate.

For many Colombians, this election represents more than a contest between three frontrunners. It has become a referendum on President Petro’s stalled reform agenda, the country’s deteriorating security situation, and the future direction of a democracy facing some of its most significant challenges at a time when the “pink tide” of left-wing governments across Latin America has largely receded. Or in the words of former FARC hostage and ex-presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt: “May ethics, hope, truth, and commitment to Colombia prevail today over the machismo, fear, violence, and misogyny of the extremes. I trust that we will have the first woman President.”

 

 

Colombia is preparing for one of the largest international election observation missions in its history as the country heads toward Sunday’s presidential election amid heightened security measures, dry laws and nationwide institutional alerts aimed at safeguarding the democratic process.

Polling stations across Colombia will open on Sunday, May 31, from 8:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. as voters head to the ballot box to elect a new president for the 2026–2030 term. If no candidate secures an outright majority, a runoff election will be held on June 21.

More than 1,200 international observers from 22 countries are expected to monitor the elections under a mission coordinated by Colombia’s National Electoral Council (CNE), in what officials describe as one of the most extensive observation deployments ever organized in the country.

The official installation of the International Observation Mission took place Friday morning at Bogotá’s Grand Hyatt Hotel, where electoral authorities, diplomats and representatives of multilateral organizations gathered ahead of the vote.

According to the CNE, a total of 1,207 accredited observers will participate in territorial inspections, technical briefings and electoral monitoring operations across various regions of Colombia.

Authorities say the mission seeks to strengthen public confidence, transparency and legitimacy in a country where concerns over disinformation campaigns, fake news and political polarization have increasingly shaped the electoral climate.

Official figures show Colombia will install 118,346 voting tables distributed across 13,489 polling stations nationwide.

Among the international observers already arriving in Colombia is U.S. Republican Senator from Ohio, Bernie Moreno, who landed in Cartagena to participate in election monitoring activities.

Moreno, who was born in Colombia before emigrating to the United States, is part of the delegation accredited by the National Electoral Council to observe the presidential elections and verify the conditions under which the democratic process unfolds.

In Bogotá, authorities have implemented extraordinary measures aimed at maintaining public order during election weekend.

Mayor Carlos Fernando Galán’s administration announced that the capital’s “Ley Seca,” or dry law, will begin at 6:00 p.m. on Friday, May 29, and remain in effect until midday on Monday, June 1.

The restrictions prohibit the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages in public spaces and establishments open to the public throughout Bogotá.

The measure begins 24 hours earlier than the nationwide presidential decree regulating election weekend restrictions and has sparked criticism from nightlife businesses, bars and restaurant owners who warn the extended dry law could significantly impact weekend revenues.

Business owners have also pointed to the timing of the UEFA Champions League final scheduled for Saturday evening between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal F.C. at Budapest’s Puskás Aréna, an event expected to draw large crowds to bars and public viewing venues across the Colombian capital.

“The decree seeks to guarantee coexistence and the proper development of the electoral process,” Bogotá authorities said in the official order announcing the restrictions.

At the same time, Bogotá’s Health Secretariat declared a yellow hospital alert across the entire capital beginning Friday evening and lasting through Monday evening.

The alert places the city’s public and private hospital network under a state of heightened operational readiness in anticipation of any emergencies or disturbances related to the elections.

“We call on all hospital directors and healthcare providers to strictly comply with the directives established under this alert,” José Vicente Guzmán, Bogotá’s deputy director for Emergency and Disaster Risk Management, said in a statement.

“It is essential to streamline patient admissions in emergency rooms, optimize ambulance response times and maintain direct and real-time communication channels with the city’s Emergency and Urgency Coordination Center,” he added.

Under the emergency protocols, hospitals have been ordered to activate disaster risk contingency plans, guarantee staffing availability, ensure sufficient medical supplies and maintain full operational readiness of ambulance services and patient transfer systems.

Authorities warned the alert level could be raised to orange or red depending on events during the weekend.

Residents requiring emergency medical attention have been advised to contact Bogotá’s 137 emergency hotline, which will remain operational around the clock throughout the election period.

Elsewhere in Colombia, local governments are also implementing measures to facilitate voting and public mobility.

In Medellín and the surrounding Aburrá Valley metropolitan region, authorities announced free rides on the city’s metro and cable car systems on election day until 6:00 p.m., while bus services will continue operating normally.

The presidential election arrives at a politically charged moment for Colombia after months of polarized campaigning, growing security concerns in several regions and intense national debate over the future direction of the country following the first leftist administration of President Gustavo Petro.

International observers, electoral authorities and security forces are expected to remain deployed throughout the weekend as Colombia prepares for one of the most consequential elections in recent years.

Colombia’s Armed Forces and regional authorities are struggling to verify the full scale of a bloody confrontation between rival FARC dissident factions in the remote southeastern department of Guaviare after clashes reportedly left more than 50 combatants dead.

The fighting, described by officials as one of the deadliest episodes this year involving former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) splinter groups, erupted in rural areas near the departmental capital San José del Guaviare between forces loyal to two dissident commanders known by their war aliases “Calarcá” and “Iván Mordisco.”

According to a communiqué released by the faction aligned with Calarcá, the confrontation began when approximately 250 fighters allegedly under the command of Néstor Gregorio Vera Fernández, alias Iván Mordisco, launched a surprise assault on a dissident encampment in the hamlet of La Siberia.

The clashes were reported in the rural sectors of Barranco Colorado, Charras and Trocha Ganadera, cattle farming regions with limited state presence.

The Calarcá faction claimed that a combat column belonging to the Isaías Carvajal Front had been resting overnight when it was attacked before dawn.

“In an act of legitimate self-defense, our units broke the siege, inflicting the first enemy casualties,” the group said in the statement, which was circulated through clandestine channels on Thursday.

“After three hours of combat, the enemy withdrew leaving fifty dead on the battlefield and carrying away a large number of wounded,” the communiqué added.

Colombia’s Army confirmed that troops from Brigade 22 remain deployed in the rural outskirts of San José del Guaviare, the epicenter of the fighting, but authorities acknowledged that they have been unable to fully enter the conflict zone due to difficult terrain and the continued presence of heavily armed illegal groups.

Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez confirmed the clashes took place in the Barranco Colorado sector, more than 100 kilometers east of San José del Guaviare, but refrained from confirming casualty figures. Minister Sánchez did, however, claim that the official statement amounted to a “confession and public admission” of an “atrocious crime”. Sánchez also warned that the reported deaths of underage combatants would constitute a grave violation of international humanitarian law and Colombian criminal legislation, further intensifying scrutiny over forced recruitment of children by FARC dissidents.

Officials said access to the region is severely restricted, with many areas reachable only through jungle tracks and river routes. Colombia’s forensic authorities, including Medicina Legal, have yet to recover or identify bodies from the battlefield.

Regional authorities convened an extraordinary security council meeting on Wednesday amid fears that the violence could intensify ahead of Colombia’s presidential election scheduled for May 31.

San José del Guaviare Mayor Willy Rodríguez told Caracol Radio that preliminary reports suggested “dozens” may have died, though he cautioned that authorities had not yet independently verified the numbers.

“We are receiving alarming information from residents in the rural areas, but the Armed Forces still have not been able to fully enter and confirm the situation,” Rodríguez said.

Governor Yeison Rojas joined police and military commanders in emergency deliberations as intelligence agencies attempted to establish the true scale of the confrontation.

The dissident faction loyal to Calarcá accused Iván Mordisco of provoking the conflict and described the elusive guerrilla commander as “a mentally disturbed individual with ideological shortcomings and psychopathic tendencies.”

The statement also claimed the group seized a significant cache of weapons during the battle, including four machine guns, 49 assault rifles, two Dragunov sniper rifles and more than 10,000 rounds of ammunition.

The faction further stated that two of its own fighters were killed and three wounded, while also claiming to have captured “a female prisoner of war.”

“We inform the Colombian people that this tragic event, occurring four days before an electoral contest, was not initiated by us,” the communiqué concluded. “It was an act of legitimate self-defense.”

The confrontation underscores the growing fragmentation and territorial disputes among Colombia’s remaining armed groups following the 2016 peace accord between the Colombian government and the FARC guerrillas.

Iván Mordisco, once considered one of the most powerful dissident commanders operating outside the peace agreement, has become a central figure in the collapse of President Gustavo Petro’s “Total Peace” negotiations with illegal armed groups.

Security analysts warn that Guaviare, a historic stronghold for the former FARC insurgency and a major coca-producing region, has increasingly become the scene of violent turf wars involving rival dissident fronts competing for narcotics routes, extortion rackets and territorial control.

The latest bloodshed also raises concerns over the deteriorating security situation in Colombia’s southeastern departments  just days before Colombians vote in a presidential election, May 31.

San José del Guaviare, long considered a strategic stronghold in Colombia’s anti-narcotics campaign, hosts one of the country’s largest counterinsurgency and anti-drug military bases, including a fleet of Black Hawk helicopter gunships used in jungle operations against armed groups and cocaine trafficking networks. The region has also historically maintained the presence of U.S. military personnel and advisers supporting intelligence, surveillance and counternarcotics missions in southeastern Colombia.

As of Thursday, Colombia’s Attorney General’s Office, National Forensic Institute – Medicina Legal – and Armed Forces had yet to issue a definitive death toll.

Former Colombian Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva Durán launched a blistering attack against President Gustavo Petro just days before Colombia heads to the polls on May 31, warning of what he described as looming threats to the country’s democratic institutions and accusing the government of preparing to reject an unfavorable electoral outcome.

In a lengthy manifesto published Tuesday on the social media platform X under the title “Propuesta de Álvaro Leyva Durán al País para las Elecciones,” the veteran Conservative politician claimed Petro fears both political defeat and possible legal consequences should right-wing presidential candidate Abelardo De la Espriella emerge victorious.

“Petro knows that his future depends on his successor protecting him from justice,” Leyva wrote, adding that De la Espriella “could win the elections in the first round.”

According to Leyva, the former member of the M-19 guerrilla and senator understands that with De la Espriella in office, “he himself could end up in prison. And that is why he has sought to derail the candidate and will refuse to recognize his victory.”

The explosive accusations mark the latest escalation in the increasingly bitter campaign season ahead of what analysts are calling one of Colombia’s most polarized elections in decades. Leyva, once one of Petro’s closest political allies and his first foreign minister, has in recent months become one of the president’s fiercest critics.

In the manifesto, Leyva intertwined personal memories of Colombia’s turbulent political history with warnings about what he believes is unfolding behind the scenes of the current administration.

“At my age, I know these kinds of stories well,” he wrote, before recalling his close relationship with slain Conservative leader Álvaro Gómez Hurtado.

“My father, Jorge Leyva, gave me at birth the name of his friend Álvaro Gómez Hurtado. When I was 12 years old, Álvaro would speak to me about politics and explain the world to me with a globe.”

Leyva recounted how Gómez and his own father were exiled after the 1953 military coup, and how decades later he worked alongside Gómez politically, even helping negotiate his release after he was kidnapped by the M-19 guerrilla movement in 1988.

“In 1995, after leaving a lecture at Sergio Arboleda University, Álvaro Gómez and I shook hands for the last time,” Leyva wrote. “Because minutes later, I watched in horror as he was assassinated in his car. It was a national tragedy.”

The former minister used Gómez’s legacy as a contrast to his eventual disillusionment with Petro.

“Because of that, I believed I could work with Gustavo Petro,” he said. “When he invited me to become his minister, I accepted because I believed him to be an honorable man. But I was wrong.”

Leyva then delivered some of his harshest remarks yet against the president.

“I came to know the monster from within: his vileness and degradation,” he wrote. “At enormous personal and family cost, I dared to denounce his baseness and his disrespect for the office.”

He added: “Because character demands that one not remain silent in the face of ignominy. And because of everything I witnessed, because of the rotten environment in which he (Petro) moves, I know what the government is plotting.”

Leyva also alleged that Petro’s radicalised supporters to intimidate opponents and manipulate the electoral process. “Today, while Abelardo wages a major democratic battle, Petro incites his followers to commit all kinds of outrages,” he wrote. “There has even been talk of snipers during the campaign.”

Without providing evidence, Leyva claimed that attempts had been made to invalidate De la Espriella’s candidacy, suppress favorable polling data and mobilize state-backed political machinery to influence the vote.

“On election day, rivers of money will flow in an attempt to stop De la Espriella,” he warned.

The former foreign minister also accused Petro of laying the groundwork to dispute the legitimacy of the election itself.

“The president has also spent months constructing a narrative of electoral manipulation,” Leyva wrote. In this way, according to the author, he is “weaving an argument to reject an adverse electoral outcome” that he already senses is inevitable. “That is the false ace up Petro’s sleeve,” he continued. “And like any gambler fueled by hatred, he will use it.”

Leyva also referenced U.S. Republican lawmakers from Florida, María Elvira Salazar and Rick Scott, claiming both were aware of the risks facing Colombia’s democratic process. “Scott is an ally of Colombian democracy and correctly sensed what the national government is planning,” he wrote.

In one of the most dramatic sections of the manifesto, Leyva proposed that Petro temporarily step aside if he alleges fraud after either the first or second round of voting.

“I make a proposal: if in the first or second round Petro claims there was fraud, he should step down from office under the terms of Article 193 of the Constitution,” Leyva wrote.

He suggested that the vice president temporarily assume office while an international commission made up of U.S. lawmakers, European parliamentarians, the Vatican and the United Nations review the vote count and oversee the transition of power before August 7.

“Think about it, Gustavo. Think about it carefully,” Leyva concluded. “Because the alternative will not end well for you. Abelardo De la Espriella will be the next president. And you will have to accept that reality, whether you like it or not.”

Paris, London and New York are more often associated with culture, finance and history than with dangerous heat. Yet each summer all three are increasingly exposed to extreme temperatures they were never designed to withstand.

Like many dense urban areas, they amplify heat through what is known as the “urban heat island effect”. This reflects the way that warmth is trapped in concrete, asphalt and glass, turning hot days into hazardous ones.

With skyscrapers made of glass and steel, roadways encased in cement and blocks of residential apartments, New York traps heat like few other metropolitan centres. In fact, the city has one of the highest urban heat island effects in the United States, a measurement of thermal difference between urban and rural areas.

Heat kills more than 500 New Yorkers every year, a grim statistic that exacerbates inequalities along the lines of race and class. While many people escape to the seaside or countryside to find relief, others remain in cities where the heat can be harder to avoid and more difficult to endure. Yet these uneven experiences of urban heat are not new. In cities such as London, Paris and New York, coping with hot summers has long been shaped by inequality.

Across the 19th and 20th centuries, urban residents developed a range of strategies to manage extreme heat in densely built environments. Our research for the Melting Metropolis project examines everyday experiences of heat. Here are some of the ways people have coped with these conditions in the past and what they reveal about living with heat in the city.

London

For most historic urbanites, escaping the confines of their home provided the greatest relief from the heat. In the mid-20th century, some Londoners escaped to the roof of their apartment building to catch the cooling breezes that swirled above the city’s streets.

For many others, since the 19th century, public spaces have provided the greatest respite from heat in their homes. Londoners turned to the shade provided by trees in nearby parks, paddled in water fountains or went for cooling dips in lidos and ponds.

Historic urbanites have also tried to cope with the heat at home. In contrast to those who sought relief from the heat in public spaces, wealthier Londoners used money and technology to keep cool. In the 19th century they purchased imported ice from Norway or employed servants to operate fans.

Paris

In the heatwaves of the 19th century, Parisians also headed out in search of relief. Like Londoners, they made extensive use of the parks that urban planners embedded into the fabric of the city during the late 19th-century Haussmann-era redesign. But it was not only dense greenery that provided respite from the heat: the trees planted along the avenues of the city offered shelter from the rays of the sun on hot summer days.

Although the Seine held great potential for cooling down, bathing in its waters was banned in the middle of the 19th century. Despite the official ban, photographic records show that some Parisians in search of freshness broke the law and took the plunge.

To keep cool indoors, the more privileged 19th-century Parisians used ice imported from northern regions or collected locally during the winter and stored in ice houses until temperatures rose. Ice remained a luxury item until the late 1870s, when technological developments allowing ice to be made artificially lowered its cost and widened its accessibility.

Daily life in Paris – including in the summer – had undergone thorough transformations by the middle of the 20th century. Air conditioning began to gain momentum but some traditional ways to cool down have remained at the core of summer life: crowds continue to swarm café terraces, the banks of the Seine stay packed with people, 19th-century water fountains are still used to refill water bottles.

New York

In the 19th century, the tenements of New York City were filled with people sleeping on roofs, sweating on fire escapes, and avoiding the sweltering indoors. The wealthy simply fled the city for countryside estates. Newspapers called these seasonal migrants “heat refugees”.

When seeking outdoor relief, most 19th-century New Yorkers headed to the beach – the city is an island, after all. But by the 20th century, they were also planing block parties with plenty of ice from corner store bodegas. On occasion, they also cracked open fire hydrants – a relief strategy that has become a classic trope of New York City summers.

Future heat waves

For as long as episodes of extreme heat in cities have affected urban life, urbanites have developed ways to cope. Today, cities are taking heat more seriously when they look to the future and working towards adaptation strategies. The disastrous heatwave of 2003 served as a wake-up call in Paris, which implemented a heat plan the following year and continues to work on ways to make the city more liveable in the summer.

Central to New York’s climate resilience plans, air conditioning has become a political battleground in activists’ fight for a “right to cooling” (a bundle of legislation championed by local environmental justice organisations).

Though it can compound the problem of climate change, technologically aided cooling keeps people alive as we all find ways to weather the intensifying heat. In May 2026, the UK’s Climate Change Committee declared that the British way of life is under threat from heat.

In June, London will launch its heat plan for the capital, a first step in supporting the city and its residents to live better with extreme heat.

About the author: Chloe Dutell is a Postdoctoral Research Associate, School of Histories, Languages and Cultures Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Liverpool.

 

The article is reproduced from The Conversation thanks to a Creative Commons licence

Colombia entered the final week of campaigning on Monday ahead of a presidential election that has exposed deep political divisions, sharpened ideological tensions and raised concerns over the country’s security and economic future.

The three leading candidates in the 2026 race wrapped up major public appearances over the weekend with rallies across Bogotá, where supporters waving flags, chanting slogans and wearing campaign colors filled arenas, public plazas and avenues in a final push before Sunday’s first-round vote.

The election has increasingly become a referendum on the legacy of President Gustavo Petro and the future direction of the South American nation after four years marked by failed social reforms, diplomatic friction, fiscal pressures and a deteriorating security conditions ahead of the May 31 election.

Senator Iván Cepeda, the candidate aligned with Petro’s governing Historic Pact coalition, entered the final stretch of the campaign presenting himself as the defender of progressive reforms and social justice policies aimed at reducing inequality and expanding access to education, pensions and healthcare.

Speaking before supporters in Bogotá’s historic Plaza de Bolívar, Cepeda urged Colombians to “defend hope” and reject what he described as a return to the political establishment that governed Colombia before Petro’s historic 2022 victory.

“Our project is one of dignity, peace and social transformation,” the hard-left senator told supporters. “We cannot allow fear and hatred to reverse the changes that millions of Colombians demanded.”

Cepeda has pledged to continue the government’s controversial “Total Peace” strategy, which seeks negotiated settlements with armed guerrilla groups and criminal organizations. The policy, however, has failed to curb violence and has instead allowed illegal armed factions to strengthen territorial control in rural areas.

Security has emerged as one of the defining issues of the campaign following a rise in massacres, attacks against security forces and extortion in regions including Catatumbo, Cauca and parts of the Pacific coast. Several recent bomb attacks and clashes involving dissident rebel groups have intensified public anxiety and become central talking points for opposition candidates.

Conservative lawyer and political outsider Abelardo de la Espriella has capitalized on growing frustration over insecurity, presenting himself as the candidate of “authority and order.”

During rallies attended by thousands in Bogotá, Barranquilla and Medellín, de la Espriella has promised a sweeping security crackdown against illegal armed groups, tougher prison sentences and expanded support for the military and police.

“Colombia cannot continue surrendering territory to criminals and terrorists,” he told cheering supporters. “The state must recover authority in every corner of the country.”

De la Espriella has also sought to attract business leaders and middle-class voters concerned about inflation, unemployment and slowing investment. His campaign platform includes proposals for tax reductions, deregulation and incentives aimed at restoring investor confidence after several years of economic uncertainty.

Meanwhile, senator Paloma Valencia closed her campaign with a massive event at Bogotá’s Movistar Arena, in which she framed the election as a battle to prevent Colombia from drifting toward authoritarianism and economic collapse. Throughout the campaign, she has repeatedly warned voters against what she calls “the Venezuelanization of Colombia,” a message that has resonated strongly among conservative sectors and business elites.

“We are voting for democracy, liberty and the survival of our institutions,” Valencia said during her closing rally. “Colombia cannot continue down the path of division and improvisation.”

Political analysts say the election reflects a country increasingly polarized between those who support Petro’s promise of structural change and those who believe the administration’s policies have weakened institutions, damaged investor confidence and emboldened armed groups.

Recent polling suggests Cepeda maintains a narrow lead heading into Sunday’s vote, though few observers expect any candidate to secure the more than 50 percent needed to avoid a runoff election scheduled for June 21.

The latest surveys indicate a highly competitive contest for second place between Valencia and de la Espriella, setting the stage for what could become one of the most polarized second-round races in Colombia’s modern political history.

Beyond ideology, many voters say they remain concerned about rising living costs, access to employment, corruption and public safety.

In downtown Bogotá, where campaign caravans and political posters have become a daily feature of city life, voters have expressed exhaustion after months of aggressive rhetoric and constant political confrontation.

With just days remaining before Colombians head to the polls, authorities across the country have increased security measures amid concerns over possible unrest and isolated acts of political violence.

Sunday’s election is widely viewed as one of the most consequential in decades, with the outcome expected to shape Colombia’s political and economic direction long after the campaign slogans and rallies fade from the streets of Bogotá.

The last black steam train departed Apulo on a Sunday in 1978, pulling away from a crowded platform of waving hands and tearful spectators. With its departure, the town lost more than a railway connection to Bogotá. It lost the pulse that had once tied this sweltering outpost in the Tequendama valley to Colombia’s capital. Though only 90 kilometers separate the two communities, the retreat of the “Iron Rooster” left Apulo suspended in time, a town stranded between memory and reinvention.

Today, the journey from Bogotá unfolds along the winding Mosquera–Girardot highway, where the Andes gradually loosen their grip and the air grows heavier with heat. In barely two hours, the cool drizzle of the high plateau gives way to the dry furnace of the Magdalena basin. Apulo, now home to some 16,000 residents, appears suddenly among dusty hillsides and tangled vegetation, its streets shimmering beneath a relentless tropical sun.

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the railway transformed Apulo into one of central Colombia’s favored warm-weather retreats. The steam locomotive carried Bogotá’s elites — men in fedoras and women in flowing linen dresses — away from the cold capital toward rivers, waterfalls, and languid afternoons beneath mango trees. The train itself moved slowly, hissing and rattling through the mountains with stubborn determination, yet for generations it represented modernity, escape, and connection.

Just beyond a rugged ridge lies Anapoima, Apulo’s better-known sister town, long celebrated for what a television documentary once proclaimed the “second best climate in the world.” But locals insist Apulo is hotter still. Here the heat is not gentle but elemental — dry, oppressive, and all-consuming. It settles onto rooftops and skin alike, dictating the rhythm of daily life. People move slowly in the afternoons, gathering beneath awnings and trees, while stray dogs sprawl motionless in pockets of shade.

The town’s main street feels cinematic, like a forgotten set from a spaghetti Western abandoned beneath the tropical sun. A broad dirt avenue cuts through the center, lined with weatherworn storefronts whose peeling paint curls away from cracked walls. Rusted iron balconies sag above roadside restaurants serving thick cuts of pork rind wrapped in newspaper to travelers stopping in SUVs on their way farther south. Between tufts of wild grass, fragments of the old railway tracks still emerge from the earth — ghostly reminders of an era when steam engines once thundered through town.

At the heart of Apulo stands its Republican-era town hall, painted in fading yellow and white. The building once served as one of Colombia’s grandest hotels, welcoming honeymooners, politicians, and wealthy families escaping Bogotá’s cold rains. Even now, its broad façade preserves traces of vanished elegance. But the prosperity that sustained the town slowly evaporated. A nearby cement factory relocated its operations decades ago, taking jobs and stability with it, while tourism gradually shifted behind the walls of private condominiums built into the surrounding hillsides.

A short drive separates two strikingly different versions of Apulo. On one side are gated communities hidden behind walls as tall as trees, guarded day and night by private security. Inside, modern bungalows surround tiled swimming pools and tennis courts shaded by palms. On Friday afternoons, executives from Bogotá arrive in polished SUVs, trading office shoes for sandals and linen shirts. Children ride in golf carts while parents retreat beneath air-conditioning humming against the heat.

Down by the river – Río Apulo – another Apulo unfolds. Some homes stand behind concrete walls, others beneath corrugated tin roofs balanced precariously on wooden beams. Dust from passing cars filters through open windows and settles across furniture. Young girls wander the streets in oversized high heels borrowed from their mothers, while boys cradle baby chicks in their hands and watch traffic pass from shaded doorways. Families gather outdoors in folding chairs, squinting against the white glare of the afternoon sun.

Each weekend, these parallel worlds intersect. Women from the riverside neighborhoods pass through the condominium gates in uniforms to prepare ajiaco, sweep patios, and skim leaves from swimming pools. On Sunday evenings, as the visitors depart for Bogotá and the mountain road climbs back toward cooler air, workers wave goodbye and wait for the next caravan of weekend arrivals.

As dusk settles over Apulo, the town softens. Residents drift toward the central square to catch the evening breeze, gathering beneath old-fashioned lampposts as beer bottles clink across plastic tables. Couples lean together in the fading heat while motorcycles rumble slowly past. In the darkness, the potholes, graffiti, and crumbling façades recede from view, allowing the imagination to reconstruct the town as it once was — a glamorous retreat animated by music, polished automobiles, and the arrival of the evening train.

The luxury condominiums now serve the role once occupied by the grand hotel, yet visitors still come searching for the same landscape: the dry heat, the riverside calm, the clouds of mint-green butterflies that drift through the valley at sunset. In Apulo, movement never truly stops. Cars continue arriving from Bogotá every weekend. Only the train remains absent — its station swallowed by vines, its rails rusting quietly beneath the grass, like a memory slowly disappearing into the tropical earth.

A potentially historic El Niño climate event is emerging as one of the defining stories for Colombia through the remainder of 2026, with authorities warning that extreme heat, drought, water shortages and energy pressures could push vulnerable regions toward crisis conditions.

Climate agencies, environmental authorities and agricultural groups are increasingly sounding alarms over what some scientists describe as a possible “super” El Niño – an exceptionally intense warming of Pacific Ocean waters capable of disrupting global weather systems and triggering severe consequences across Latin America.

In Colombia, the warnings are becoming stark.

Authorities fear a prolonged period of extreme temperatures, dwindling reservoirs, forest fires, crop failures and surging food prices that could stretch into early 2027 when typically the “summer season” starts. Officials have already begun urging Colombians to conserve water and electricity as forecasts indicate the phenomenon may intensify during the second half of the year.

The environmental authority of Cundinamarca, known as the CAR, warned that the probability of El Niño has reached 82%, threatening domestic water supplies, industrial production and hydroelectric generation across central Colombia.

“The measures of prevention and adaptation must be taken immediately,” CAR director Alfred Ignacio Ballesteros said, warning that the event could coincide with the Andean region’s traditional dry season in January and February, placing additional pressure on already strained water systems.

For Bogotá, however, authorities insist the capital is better prepared than during the water crisis of 2023 and 2024. The city’s Aqueduct and Sewer Company said no water rationing measures are currently expected despite the arrival of El Niño. Diego Montero, manager of the utility’s master water system, said reservoir levels remain stable, with the Chingaza system — including the Chuza and San Rafael reservoirs — holding nearly 20 million cubic meters above the established guidance curve. Officials also said the Tibitoc treatment plant is undergoing capacity upgrades aimed at increasing production and reducing pressure on the Chingaza system, which supplies most of Bogotá’s drinking water.

Fears beyond Inconvenience

Meteorologists predict temperatures in Colombia’s Caribbean region could surpass 40 degrees Celsius, while prolonged drought conditions may devastate agriculture and livestock production. Industry groups have warned that prices for staple foods including milk, rice, vegetables and beef could rise sharply toward the end of the year, adding renewed pressure to inflation at a moment when many households are already struggling with high living costs. A ‘super’ El Niño could push inflation above 7 percent, warns the National Association of Financial Institutions – ANIF.

Officials are also concerned about the vulnerability of Colombia’s energy grid, which depends heavily on hydroelectric power. Reduced rainfall and lower reservoir levels could increase the risk of electricity rationing or blackouts similar to those experienced during past El Niño events.

The country’s fragile páramo ecosystems and wetlands — critical natural water regulators located in the Andes — may also face heightened threats from forest fires and prolonged heatwaves. Environmentalists warn that drought could destroy sensitive habitats and endanger wildlife already under pressure from deforestation and climate change.

The emerging crisis is part of a broader global climate pattern that scientists say is being intensified by human-driven warming.

El Niño occurs every few years when ocean waters in the eastern and central Pacific become abnormally warm, altering rainfall patterns, shifting jet streams and increasing global temperatures. However, so-called “super” El Niño events are far rarer and more dangerous, with sea surface temperatures rising more than 2 degrees Celsius above historical averages.

Some climate researchers now fear the world could be heading toward one of the strongest El Niño events in modern history.

Paul Roundy, a professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Albany, recently warned there was “real potential” for the strongest El Niño event in 140 years. Forecasts from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts suggest Pacific Ocean temperatures could rise three degrees Celsius above average.

Such projections have revived comparisons to the catastrophic El Niño of 1877-1878, which contributed to massive crop failures and famine across parts of India, China, Brazil and Africa. Historians estimate more than 50 million people died globally during that climate disaster.

While modern infrastructure and global trade networks make a repeat of 19th-century famine unlikely, experts say today’s interconnected crises — inflation, inequality, geopolitical conflict and fragile food systems — create new vulnerabilities.

“Hunger is fundamentally political and economic,” warns Benjamin Selwyn from the University of Sussex. “Wars disrupt trade routes, inequality restricts access to food and profit-driven agricultural systems prioritize industrial production over resilience. Climate shocks such as El Niño amplify those existing weaknesses,” writes Selwyn in The Conversation.

Studies by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Meteorological Organization have already shown that rising temperatures are reducing crop yields and making agricultural labor increasingly dangerous in tropical regions. Heat stress also lowers livestock productivity and survival rates.

In Colombia, the government of leftist President Gustavo Petro has begun discussing contingency measures, though critics argue the country remains dangerously unprepared.

Carlos Carrillo, director of Colombia’s National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD), has called for urgent efforts to conserve water and energy while identifying regions at high risk of forest fires. There is also growing concern that years of underinvestment in water storage, energy diversification and climate adaptation could leave Colombia exposed to prolonged disruptions.

If the global forecasts prove accurate, Colombians could soon face months of punishing heat, food inflation and growing anxiety over the resilience of the country’s infrastructure in an age of accelerating climate extremes.

Former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe Vélez confronted a group of protesters outside his residence in Rionegro, Antioquia, on Wednesday after activists began painting a mural referencing victims of Colombia’s “false positives” scandal.

Videos and images shared widely on social media showed Uribe surrounded by security personnel while holding a paint roller near the wall where the mural was being painted. Wearing a light field jacket and broad-brimmed hat, the former president appeared visibly upset as tensions rose between demonstrators, supporters and members of his security team.

The incident quickly became one of Colombia’s most discussed political flashpoints this week, exposing deep divisions surrounding the country’s internal armed conflict with ex-FARC, the transitional justice system, and the increasingly polarized 2026 presidential race. The official candidate of Uribe’s Centro Democrático party, Paloma Valencia, is considered Cepeda’s strongest rival in the event of a run-off election on June 21.

Uribe later said he had interrupted a political meeting in Medellín after receiving a call informing him that a large group had gathered near the entrance to his property while his wife was home alone.

“Cowardly Cepeda, stop sending people to my house where my lady was alone,” Uribe wrote on X Wednesday, referring his political foe and presidential frontrunner Iván Cepeda.

In a separate statement, Uribe accused the hard-leftist senator and Hernán Muriel, a congressman from the governing Historic Pact coalition, of promoting what he described as “acts of provocation and intimidation” against his family.

According to Uribe, the protesters arrived in three buses and gathered close to the entrance of the estate while artists painted the mural. He claimed one of his supporters was injured with a knife during the confrontation and said a member of his security detail was also hurt.

“I told them that I was going to erase the mural,” Uribe wrote. “Before provoking violence against my family and our home, they would have to kill me.”

Later footage showed Uribe personally covering the painted wall with a roller while supporters and security personnel stood guard nearby.

The mural referenced the latest figures released by Colombia’s Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), the transitional tribunal created following the 2016 peace accord with FARC. The tribunal recently updated estimates tied to the “false positives” scandal, in which civilians were allegedly killed by members of the armed forces and falsely presented as combat casualties during more than four decades of Colombia’s internal conflict.

Muriel, who organized the demonstration, rejected accusations that the protest was intended to threaten Uribe or his family. He described the gathering “as a peaceful act” organized by victims’ organizations, social movements and human rights defenders seeking to highlight the revised JEP findings.

“We are carrying out an act of social mobilization and memory pedagogy,” Muriel said in remarks shared online. “We are here with social organizations, victims and human rights defenders following the new figure of 7,837 false positives announced by the JEP.”

According to Muriel, the mural was painted on public property near the residence and was intended to commemorate victims of the conflict.

The confrontation prompted swift reactions from political allies of the former president in Antioquia, one of Colombia’s most conservative regions and a longtime bastion of Uribe’s “democratic security” agenda.

Medellín Mayor Federico Gutiérrez criticized the protest and accused supporters of President Gustavo Petro of fostering political hostility toward opposition figures. “It’s the same method used during the last mayoral campaign in Medellín,” he wrote on social media, adding that political tensions in the country were continuing to escalate.

Antioquia Governor Andrés Julián Rendón also condemned the incident and called for respect toward Uribe and his family.

The episode underscores how historical revisionism spread on social media continues to discredit the legacy of the country’s two-term president (2002-2010), and leading opposition leaders. By Thursday morning, the images from Rionegro — showing Uribe beside the mural with a paint roller in hand — had spread across Colombian media and social networks, becoming the latest symbol of how the left justifies ideologically-fueled protests to vandalize public space and infrastructure.

When One Hundred Years of Solitude author Gabriel García Márquez accepted the Nobel Prize for Literature in Stockholm in 1982, Colombia arrived with him — not only in prose, but in rhythm, drumbeat and dance.

Among the delegation of more than 200 Colombian musicians and artists who traveled to Sweden was a barefoot singer from the banks of the Magdalena River whose voice would stop the banquet hall in its tracks. Her name was Sonia Bazanta Vides, though the world would come to know her simply as Totó La Momposina.

“It was as if everyone from Macondo had come down the staircase of Stockholm City Hall,” The City Paper wrote in a 2016 profile titled Colombia’s Queen of Cumbia. Totó, wrapped in the musical traditions of Colombia’s Caribbean interior, danced across the marble floors singing cumbia and bullerengue before royalty and diplomats.

After the performance, she recalled, a palace official approached with a message from the Queen of Sweden: “Never stop singing.” And for more than six decades, she never did.

On Tuesday, Colombia awoke to the news that Totó La Momposina had died at age 85 in Mexico, where she had been living in recent years after retiring from music in 2022 due to declining health. Colombia’s Ministry of Culture confirmed her death, calling her “eterna Totó,” the eternal voice who elevated and transformed the traditional music of the Caribbean coast.

Her son, Marcio Vinicio, told Colombian media that the singer had spent recent months in palliative care. President Gustavo Petro described her as an “illustrious figure of Colombian Caribbean art and culture.” Opposition leader and presidential candidate Paloma Valencia highlighted that Totó la Momposina “took our music to the world and taught us to feel pride in what is ours. Her legacy is the nation’s heritage”.

Born in 1940 in Talaigua Nuevo, on the Magdalena River near Santa Cruz de Mompox, Totó emerged from a lineage where music was inherited as naturally as language itself. Her father was a shoemaker and drummer; her mother sang, danced and played the mandola. By age six, Totó was already performing onstage.

But it was the villages and wetlands of Colombia’s Caribbean coast that became her true conservatory.

As a teenager, she traveled from town to town absorbing rhythms born from the collision of African, Indigenous and Spanish traditions. She studied the cantadoras — women who sang while washing clothes in the river, grinding corn or tending cassava fields — and transformed those oral traditions into a musical language that would eventually reach audiences around the globe.

“The love for music is passed on through your genes,” she told The City Paper in 2016. “I never lost my sense of belonging.”

That belonging was rooted in Mompós, the island town from which her stage name derived. For centuries, the Magdalena River served as Colombia’s great cultural artery, carrying not only gold and commerce inland from the Caribbean coast, but rhythms: cumbia, mapalé, chalupa, porro and bullerengue.

Totó would become their most recognizable ambassador.

After her family fled violence during Colombia’s mid-century civil conflict and settled in Bogotá, her mother transformed their home into a sanctuary for Caribbean music. Musicians such as Lucho Bermúdez passed through the house, and Totó soon formed her own group in the 1960s, performing at neighborhood parties and on television.

In the 1980s, she moved to Paris to study at the Sorbonne University, immersing herself in music history, choreography and stage production while singing in metro stations, restaurants and street corners throughout the French capital.

France would become a second home — and the launching pad for international recognition.

Her breakthrough arrived when Peter Gabriel heard her perform and invited her to record at his Real World studio near Bath, England. The resulting 1993 album, La Candela Viva, introduced global audiences to songs like El Pescador and cemented her place on the world music stage.

She would go on to perform across Europe, Latin America and the United States, reportedly appearing more than 300 times at New York’s Radio City Music Hall. Her influence stretched far beyond folk music circles. Artists including Manu Chao and Timbaland sampled her work, while she lent vocals to Latinoamérica.

Though often called “The Queen of Cumbia” or “The Voice of Colombia,” Totó resisted celebrity detached from tradition. For her, the stage remained sacred. “The stage is a temple,” she told The City Paper. “You must respect it. I give my heart to the audience. It is a commitment.”

Even in her seventies, she continued performing with fierce energy, appearing at events tied to Colombia’s peace process and receiving honors including the Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and France’s highest Order of Arts and Letters, the Chevalier des Arts et Lettres.

Her final public years coincided with a renewed appreciation among Colombians for their own musical roots — roots Totó had spent a lifetime defending.

In September 2022, she announced her retirement due to neurocognitive complications. Yet her songs endured as living memory: the voice of fishermen on the Magdalena, of Afro-Colombian drumming circles, of women singing beside the riverbanks of the Caribbean coast.

“The day that I cease to be nervous before going on stage, I will retire,” she once said. “Because at that point music will have become mechanical.”

For Totó La Momposina, music never became mechanical. It remained alive, ceremonial, ancestral — a fire carried across generations. And perhaps that is why the Queen of Sweden’s words still resonate today: Never stop singing.

A new national survey suggests Colombia’s 2026 presidential race is shaping into a high-stakes runoff between Iván Cepeda and conservative rival Paloma Valencia, with the first round on May 31 favoring the left-wing senator, but the second round  – on June 21 – projecting a narrow victory for the Centro Democratico candidate.

The latest poll by Fundación Génesis Crea places Cepeda at the top of voter intention for the first round with 35.1%, followed by Valencia with 25.4% and lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella with 21.6%, signaling an increasingly polarized contest just weeks before Colombians head to the polls.

The survey, conducted between May 4 and May 11 across 134 municipalities and 24 departmental capitals, interviewed 4,352 citizens and presents one of the most detailed snapshots yet of the country’s electoral mood ahead of what many analysts are calling the most decisive presidential vote in years.

Despite Cepeda’s strong lead in the opening round, the numbers suggest a dramatic reversal in a hypothetical runoff. In a second-round scenario against Valencia, the senator from the Democratic Center would secure 48.3% of the vote, compared to 45.6% for Cepeda, while blank votes would account for 6.1%.

The findings indicate that while Cepeda commands a consolidated progressive base, Valencia could benefit from a broader anti-government coalition in a runoff, uniting conservative, centrist and undecided voters wary of continuity with President Gustavo Petro’s political project.

Against other rivals, Cepeda performs more strongly. He would defeat De la Espriella with 46.5% to 41.4%, and also surpass former Bogotá mayor Claudia López with 47.2% to 40.2%, though blank voting would remain unusually high at around 12% in both matchups.

The poll also reflects the deep national divide over Petro’s presidency. Some 51.2% of respondents reported an unfavorable image of the president, while 44.6% viewed him positively. By contrast, former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez registered a 50.4% favorable rating, with 48.3% holding an unfavorable view.

These figures reinforce the enduring political influence of Uribe, whose legacy continues to shape right-wing mobilization, while Petro faces growing criticism over security concerns, economic uncertainty and the faltering progress of his “Total Peace” agenda.

Beyond the top three contenders, voter preference remains fragmented. López registers 3.6%, followed by Sergio Fajardo at 2.9%, while other names such as Roy Barreras, Mauricio Liscano and Carlos Caicedo remain below 1%.

Blank voting stands at 3.2%, while 5.4% of respondents said they remain undecided — a figure that could prove decisive in an increasingly volatile campaign season.

The study reports a margin of error of ±1.485% and a 95% confidence level, with data weighted according to official demographic indicators from the Dane and the National Civil Registry. The sample covered all major regions of Colombia, including the Caribbean, Pacific, Coffee Region, Llanos and Amazon basin.

With just two weeks before the first decisive round, the poll confirms that Colombia is heading toward an electoral confrontation defined less by ideological persuasion than by rejection: a battle between those seeking continuity with Petro’s leftist administration and those determined to stop it.

For now, Cepeda leads the first charge. But if the runoff materializes as projected, Paloma Valencia may be waiting at the finish line.

The Bogotá Short Film Festival – BOGOSHORTS – is strengthening its international footprint at the 79th Cannes Film Festival with a major presence at the Short Film Corner | Rendez-vous Industry, positioning Colombian and regional filmmakers before one of the world’s most influential film markets.

From May 13 to 24, this leading platforms for Latin America’s short films will present two curated collections of short films at Cannes while deepening industry ties through networking events, producer exchanges and strategic collaborations aimed at increasing international visibility for emerging Latin American talent.

The initiative marks the second consecutive year that the BOGOSHORTS universe has secured a prominent place within Cannes’ Cinema de Demain section, the festival’s platform dedicated to discovering the next generation of filmmakers.

This year, BOGOSHORTS will showcase 10 short films divided into two programs: BOGOSHORTS World Tour – Winners Colombia and BOGOSHORTS World Tour – Latin American Talents. The films will be available to accredited industry professionals through the Short Film Corner space within the Marché du Film and on Cinando, the industry networking platform used by festival programmers, producers, critics and institutional representatives.

The Colombian selection includes five award-winning films from the festival’s 23rd edition: Agachar el rostro, directed by Camilo Medina Noy; Un aparato para detectar fantasmas, by Mauricio Maldonado; Malas posturas, directed by Juan Pablo Castro; Mi viche todo el día, by Juan Camilo Moreno; and Luz de luna, directed by Claudia Alejandra Rivera Guarnizo.

The Latin American showcase brings together a new generation of filmmakers from across the region, including Uruguay’s stop-motion short Lodo, Mexico-Cuba co-production Cicatriz de fe, Mexican production Carne, Colombian short La ley de las acciones, and Chilean production Petra y el sol.

A delegation of 17 filmmakers and producers connected to these projects will attend Cannes in person, participating in a packed agenda of panels, workshops, masterclasses, project presentations and networking sessions.

For BOGOSHORTS founder and director Jaime E. Manrique, the presence at Cannes reflects a broader mission to ensure short films from Colombia and Latin America gain stronger access to international markets.

“Ensuring that Colombian and Latin American short film talent has a stronger presence and greater opportunities for international projection and connection is one of BOGOSHORTS’ core missions,” Manrique said in a statement.

“Thanks to the agreement with the Short Film Corner | Rendez-vous Industry at the Cannes Film Festival and the articulation with our film market, this goal is not only possible, but strengthened for the second consecutive year with the participation of a young Colombian producer in the New Producers Room.”

That producer is Melisa Zapata Montoya, who stands out as the only Latin American participant selected for the 2026 edition of the New Producers Room, a Cannes initiative that supports 10 promising short film producers from around the world.

Created in 2022, the New Producers Room is designed for producers who have already completed at least two short films and are seeking international co-production opportunities. The program combines online sessions with presentations in Cannes and facilitates meetings with potential collaborators, investors and creative partners.

Zapata, recognized for projects such as Menguante (2017), Paloquemao (2020) and the feature project Pétalos de sangre (2027), joins the group through BOGOSHORTS’ recommendation, reinforcing the festival’s role as a bridge between Colombian talent and the global industry.

As part of its collaboration with Cannes, BOGOSHORTS will also select one of the 10 New Producers Room participants to attend the next edition of the BFM — BOGOSHORTS Film Market in Bogotá this December.

The selected producer will receive a tailored industry agenda and enter the BFM incubator, designed to strengthen project development and long-term professional growth. Manrique will make the selection directly in Cannes after reviewing the participating projects.

The BFM, now preparing for its 10th edition, has become one of Colombia’s most important spaces for short film development and international co-production, serving as a platform for emerging filmmakers seeking access to wider distribution networks.

Beyond screenings and business meetings, BOGOSHORTS will host a reception on May 19 at Colombia’s national stand in Cannes with support from Proimágenes Colombia. The event will bring together Latin American filmmakers, producers and institutional allies as part of its strategy to consolidate international partnerships and present future global calls for participation.

The organization will also sponsor the closing cocktail of the New Producers Room, further increasing its visibility within Cannes’ professional circuit.

The Latin American talents collection was supported by Chile’s Cortos en Grande Festival and Uruguay’s Festival del Nuevo Cine – Detour, underscoring the regional collaboration behind the initiative.

For BOGOSHORTS, the growing presence at Cannes is part of a long-term internationalization strategy that extends beyond festival screenings.

It is an effort to position short film not as a stepping stone to feature filmmaking, but as a vital creative and industrial format in its own right – one capable of opening doors for a new generation of Latin American storytellers with many of the world’s leading industry professionals.

Under a mirage of glowing escalators inside Bogotá’s Ágora Convention Center, the catwalks of Bogotá Fashion Week opened Tuesday with more than fabrics and silhouettes on display. Behind the runway lights lies a larger ambition: to turn Colombia’s capital into a regional fashion export hub and bring designers from Bogotá’s workshops and popular commercial districts onto the global stage.

Now in its ninth edition, Bogotá Fashion Week (BFW), led by the Cámara de Comercio de Bogotá, has become the city’s main commercial and promotional platform for fashion, bringing together 145 brands, 28 runway shows, more than 80 international buyers and 755 business meetings aimed at strengthening Colombia’s presence in international markets.

For Ovidio Claros Polanco, president of the chamber, the event is no longer simply about showcasing collections, but about transforming fashion into a driver of economic growth and international competitiveness.

“In Bogotá, the fashion sector represents 33% of the city’s economic activity and brings together approximately 35,000 active companies, the majority of them microenterprises,” Claros said. He added that between 220,000 and 250,000 people are directly linked to the industry, with its impact extending into tourism, hotels, gastronomy and transportation.

The strategy, he said, is to move beyond the traditional notion of fashion as an exclusive industry and instead position it as an economic ecosystem capable of generating employment and export opportunities across all levels of the city.

That vision is particularly visible through [PUENTE] Internacional, a program created by the chamber to connect entrepreneurs from Bogotá’s traditional commercial districts such as San Victorino and Restrepo with major global fashion circuits including New York, Madrid, Dubai and Paris.

This year, eight Bogotá-based brands — Alanna, A Modo Mio, C’emadier, Más Cincuenta y Siete by Love Me Jeans, Lorant & Co, Lyenzo, Liza Herrera and Kernel Leather — were selected to present their autumn-winter collections during Fashion Designers of Latin America (FDLA) at New York Fashion Week in February.

The initiative marked one of the strongest international pushes yet for Bogotá’s so-called “popular fashion” sector, traditionally associated with local manufacturing districts rather than luxury runways.

“We are committed to the internationalization of Bogotá’s popular fashion because it is a powerful vehicle for economic growth and job creation,” Claros said. “We want the best of Bogotá’s design talent to arrive in the global capitals of fashion stepping forward with strength.”

The selection process involved curators and industry figures including Albania Rosario, founder of FDLA, José Forteza, former senior editor of Vogue México, Colombian designer Jorge Duque and stylist Estefanía Turbay.

For Albania Rosario, the initiative reflects the growing relevance of Latin American fashion beyond its domestic markets.

“Each of these brands represents not only the excellence of Bogotá’s design, but also the resilient and visionary spirit of our creative community,” Rosario said. “It is a reminder of the transformative power of Latin American fashion on the global stage.”

The international agenda continues well beyond Bogotá Fashion Week. Following the local runway events this week, [PUENTE] designers are scheduled to participate in Pasarela Madrid later in May, followed by Dubai Fashion Week in September, New York Fashion Week’s spring-summer season, and Paris Fashion Week later that month.

Inside Ágora, the business focus is equally visible. Alongside runway presentations from designers such as Kika Vargas, Francesca Miranda and Alejandro Crocker, the event hosts wholesale meetings between Colombian brands and international buyers seeking new suppliers and partnerships.

A multi-brand retail space open to the public and a series of 24 industry talks with more than 60 speakers also seek to bridge the gap between creative design and commercial scalability.

For organizers, integrating districts like San Victorino and Restrepo into this model is essential. Rather than separating emerging luxury labels from mass-market producers, the chamber is pushing for a unified ecosystem where independent designers, small workshops and large buyers operate within the same commercial conversation.

“There is a need to remove the idea that fashion belongs to only a few people,” Claros said. “This belongs to everyone. Countries change through actions like these.”

As Bogotá Fashion Week expands its global ambitions, the challenge will be whether Colombian brands can translate visibility into long-term exports and sustained international demand.

For now, however, the city is betting that fashion — from the ateliers of Chapinero to the workshops of San Victorino — can become one of Bogotá’s strongest international calling cards.

The departure of former Vice President Germán Vargas Lleras’s coffin from Bogotá’s Palacio de San Carlos on Monday morning blended state mourning with unmistakable political symbolism, as Colombia’s political elite gathered to bid farewell to one of the country’s most influential figures.

His daughter, Clemencia Vargas Umaña, attended the ceremony accompanied by her father’s two French bulldogs – Toño and Henry –  adding a deeply personal note to the solemn proceedings before the main funeral mass at 11:00 a.m. inside Bogotá’s Primatial Cathedral of Bogotá. The service marked the conclusion of three days in which the Foreign Ministry headquarters became the center of national political attention.

Vice President Francia Márquez represented the national government in the absence of President Gustavo Petro and delivered one of the most emotional moments of the day when she embraced Clemencia Vargas before the ceremony. Earlier, Márquez had publicly offered condolences to the family, praising Vargas Lleras’ democratic legacy and saying his “democratic work will be remembered.”

The wake drew figures from across Colombia’s political spectrum, reflecting Vargas Lleras’ decades-long influence. Former presidents Juan Manuel Santos, with whom Vargas Lleras served as vice president, Ernesto Samper, and Iván Duque were present, along with senator Paloma Valencia and former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez, whose attendance underscored the respect afforded to Vargas Lleras despite years of sharp public disputes between the two men.

Vargas Lleras died Friday in Bogotá after a prolonged battle with cancer. He was 64. His death ends a political career spanning more than three decades as senator, minister, vice president, and two-time presidential candidate.

Born in Bogotá on February 19, 1962, Vargas Lleras came from one of Colombia’s most prominent political dynasties. His grandfather, former President Carlos Lleras Restrepo, was a leading figure of the Liberal Party.

He built his own career as a city councilman, congressman, minister, and ultimately leader of the Cambio Radical party. His first presidential run came in 2010, where he finished third with nearly 1.5 million votes. Though unsuccessful, the campaign positioned him as a national force.

President Santos later appointed him to his cabinet, and in 2014 selected him as his running mate for reelection. The pair won in the runoff, and Vargas Lleras assumed office as vice president on August 7 that year.

He ran again for president in 2018 under the “Mejor Vargas Lleras” coalition, focusing on infrastructure, housing and administrative reform. He finished fourth in the first round and did not advance to the runoff.

Throughout his career, Vargas Lleras survived two assassination attempts and weathered political scandals, including accusations linked to parapolitics investigations, though he was never formally charged.

In later years, his health increasingly limited his public life. He was diagnosed with a benign meningioma in 2016 after a fainting episode, and in recent years battled cancer while largely stepping back from frontline politics.

Even as his public appearances became rare, his influence endured. Monday’s funeral made clear that, in death as in life, Germán Vargas Lleras remained a central figure in Colombia’s political history.

Qatar Airways has affirmed its expansion in the Americas with the launch of new flight operations to Caracas, Venezuela, and Bogotá, Colombia, commencing from 22 July 2026. The service represents a significant milestone for the airline, as Qatar Airways becomes the first Gulf carrier to serve Venezuela, and the first airline to operate flights from the Middle East to Caracas and Bogotá. This expansion underscores the airline’s commitment, announced last year, to strengthening global connectivity for the region.

Qatar Airways flights to Caracas (CCS) and Bogotá (BOG)

Qatar Airways will operate two weekly flights to Caracas and Bogotá, further enhancing connectivity to, and from, the Americas. The flight schedule has been designed to provide smooth onward connections through Hamad International Airport to key markets including Australia, China, Japan, Lebanon, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. This offers passengers greater flexibility and seamless transfer options across Qatar Airways’ global network.

Departing every Wednesday and Sunday:

• Doha (DOH) to Bogotá (BOG) – Flight QR783: Departure 07:30; Arrival 16:05

• Bogotá (BOG) to Caracas (CCS) – Flight QR783: Departure 17:35; Arrival 20:40

• Caracas (CCS) to Doha (DOH) – Flight QR783 Departure 22:40; Arrival 19:55 +1

The addition of Caracas and Bogotá marks both the 15th and 16th destinations in the Americas served by Qatar Airways. The airline began serving South America in 2010 with its inaugural flight to Brazil’s São Paulo.

 

Colombian authorities have seized and safely deactivated a commercial drone carrying improvised explosive materials just 5.4 kilometers from Bogotá’s El Dorado International Airport and the nearby Military Air Transport Command (CATAM), raising fresh security concerns in the capital three weeks before the country’s May 31 presidential election.

The discovery marks a significant escalation from recent unauthorized drone sightings that twice forced temporary flight suspensions at El Dorado, Colombia’s busiest airport, and highlights growing fears that tactics once largely confined to conflict zones in the southwest and Catatumbo region are now reaching the capital.

According to preliminary police and military reports, the device was located in the locality of Kennedy, near the Río Bogotá, after a security alert issued by prosecutors in Popayán, Cauca, prompted specialized units of the Colombian Air Force (FAC) and National Police to track suspicious coordinates in southern Bogotá.

Authorities found what appeared to be a makeshift encampment before locating the commercial drone, its battery and an explosive charge separated from the fuselage.

Anti-explosives officers later confirmed the device had been modified with a non-conventional fiber-optic guidance system, a method increasingly used by illegal armed groups to evade electronic signal jammers designed to disable unmanned aircraft.

Investigators said the drone carried approximately 258 grams of C4 explosive material inside a PVC tube fitted with an improvised detonator.

The device was safely neutralized by National Police explosives experts and transferred to the Attorney General’s Office – Fiscalía General – for forensic analysis and the opening of a criminal investigation.

Authorities have not publicly identified those responsible or confirmed the intended target, but officials noted the location placed the drone within minutes of both El Dorado International Airport and CATAM, one of Colombia’s most strategic military aviation facilities.

Security analysts say the use of fiber-optic spools as a guidance mechanism resembles tactics recently documented in Catatumbo and southwestern Colombia, particularly among the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla and FARC dissident factions under the command of alias “Iván Mordisco.”

A similar drone equipped with the same system was discovered in Popayán on April 25 during a wave of attacks blamed on FARC dissidents in Cauca, while another was found the same day in Villavicencio, the departmental capital of Meta.

The appearance of such devices in Bogotá has raised alarm among security officials, particularly given the proximity to civilian and military aviation infrastructure.

Pilots and aviation experts warn that even small commercial drones can cause catastrophic damage if they collide with an aircraft during takeoff or landing. A drone carrying explosives near an airport runway significantly increases the potential for a large-scale tragedy.

The discovery also comes at a politically sensitive moment, with Colombia entering the final weeks before its presidential election on May 31, as security and public order remain dominant campaign issues amid rising violence in the departments of Antioquia, Chocó, and Norte de Santander.

The leftist government of President Gustavo Petro has faced intense criticism over deteriorating security conditions, particularly following road bombing attributed to illegal armed groups in Cauca, Valle del Cauca, Nariño and Catatumbo, where the use of drones for surveillance and attacks has become increasingly common.

Last month, drone sightings near El Dorado airport twice forced authorities to suspend all air operations, disrupting domestic and international flights and exposing vulnerabilities near the country’s principal air gateway.

On April 30, Aerocivil halted airport operations after the Colombian Aerospace Force confirmed the presence of a drone in the Engativá district near the airport perimeter. Two aircraft were forced to carry out missed approaches, including an international LATAM Airlines Boeing 787 arriving from Santiago, Chile, while another domestic flight was diverted to Armenia, Quindío.

Just two days earlier, on April 28, another drone was detected near El Dorado, triggering a 45-minute suspension of takeoffs and landings while military personnel deployed anti-drone systems and visual searches.

Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez later confirmed that operations had been temporarily canceled because of the possible drone sighting, although no confirmed target was found.

Aerocivil has repeatedly warned that unauthorized drone activity near airports represents a grave threat to aviation safety and can result in criminal prosecution.

Thursday’s discovery, however, suggests the threat may extend far beyond operational disruption.

For Bogotá, the concern is no longer simply rogue recreational drones interfering with airport traffic, but the possibility that explosive-equipped devices linked to Colombia’s armed conflict are now within reach of the nation’s capital – and its most critical infrastructure.

For thousands of Colombians planning their long-awaited European summer escape, the season of sun-drenched piazzas, Mediterranean beaches and packed airport terminals may come with unexpected advice: think local.

From Madrid and Paris to Rome and Athens, the 2026 summer travel season is approaching under the shadow of a mounting aviation crisis linked to the ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow maritime corridor through which nearly a fifth of the world’s oil supply normally passes. Since late February, when the United States and Israel escalated military operations against Iran, the region has become the epicenter of a global energy shock, sending jet fuel prices soaring and forcing airlines across Europe to begin trimming routes.

For travelers departing from Colombia — many of them booking multi-city holidays months in advance — the message is becoming increasingly clear: flexibility may be as important as a valid passport.

The warning signs began in mid-April, when the head of the International Energy Agency cautioned that Europe had “maybe six weeks of jet fuel left” if supply routes from the Gulf remained blocked. Kerosene, the refined petroleum product that powers most commercial aircraft, depends heavily on imports and refining chains linked to the Middle East. With shipping through Hormuz effectively frozen, that supply chain is under extraordinary pressure.

Although major airlines have sought to reassure passengers that immediate shortages are not yet critical, the economics are already biting. Jet fuel prices have reportedly doubled since the start of the crisis, squeezing carriers already operating on tight summer margins.

Low-cost airline Transavia became the latest carrier to announce flight cancellations for May and June, following similar moves by Ryanair, easyJet, Vueling and Volotea. The airlines cited the prohibitive cost of fuel and difficulties securing kerosene imports from Gulf suppliers.

On Thursday, more than 1,200 flights were cancelled, impacting travelers in Spain, England, France and Portugal. Barcelona and Amsterdam emerged as the airports most affected by delays.

For Colombian travelers, the risk is not necessarily that transatlantic flights from Bogotá to Europe will vanish overnight, but that onward connections within Europe — often booked separately on budget carriers — could be the first casualties.

A direct flight to Madrid may still depart on time, but the low-cost connection to Naples, Santorini or Dubrovnik could disappear after takeoff.

That creates a financial domino effect. Missed hotel reservations, prepaid train tickets, cruise departures and internal tours can quickly transform a dream holiday into an expensive logistical nightmare.

The Airports Council International Europe has warned that regional airports face an “existential threat” if airlines continue cutting capacity. Smaller airports, from Orly to Girona, and secondary tourist destinations are especially vulnerable because passengers on those routes tend to be more price-sensitive and airlines can pull service faster.

Even Germany’s flagship carrier Lufthansa recently cut 20,000 summer flights through its regional subsidiary CityLine, signaling that the strain is reaching far beyond the low-cost market.

Then there is the second concern unsettling travelers this season: public health alerts surrounding cases of Hantavirus contagion following the confirmed outbreak onboard the luxury cruise ship MV Hondius. A total of 146 people from 23 different countries remain aboard the vessel under “strict precautionary measures,” operator Oceanwide Expeditions said Thursday.

Though far less likely to disrupt flights than the fuel crisis, the outbreak has added another layer of anxiety for travelers heading to popular beach resorts, countryside retreats and nature-heavy itineraries across Europe. Health officials are urging tourists to remain cautious in cabins, campsites and rural accommodations where rodent exposure can increase infection risks.

For most travelers, the risk remains manageable with basic precautions, but it reinforces the same lesson of the COVID19 pandemic: preparation matters, so be ready for extra biosecurity screenings on arrival or to fly the 10-hour red-eye with a facemask.

Travel advisors are now recommending Colombians heading abroad this summer avoid rigid itineraries and consider refundable bookings wherever possible. Booking flights and connections under a single airline alliance can also offer stronger passenger protections than stitching together separate low-cost tickets.

Travel insurance, often treated as an afterthought, may become the smartest purchase of the trip.

Passengers should also monitor airline notices closely, especially if flying with budget carriers operating regional European routes. Some cancellations may come with limited notice, and rebooking options during peak summer weeks can be both scarce and expensive.

Industry analysts say much depends on diplomacy. If negotiations between Washington and Tehran resume and maritime traffic through Hormuz partially reopens, the worst-case scenario may be avoided. But if the blockade persists into June, Europe could face a genuine aviation squeeze just as millions of tourists arrive for the high season.

For Colombians dreaming of Paris cafés, Greek islands or the Amalfi Coast, Europe remains open — but no longer predictable.

This summer, the best souvenir may not be a photograph from the Mediterranean, but the peace of mind that comes from having a Plan B.

At Nohra Haime Gallery, in Manhattan’s white-walled Chelsea district, Cartagena-based artist Ruby Rumié is asking a deceptively simple question: How are the children?

It is not a casual greeting, nor the sentimental title of a new exhibition. Instead, it draws from the Maasai expression “Kasserian Ingera,” a phrase that measures the wellbeing of an entire community through the condition of its youngest members. If the children are well, the society is functioning; if they are not, everything else is called into question.

For Rumié, whose socially engaged practice has long examined dignity, memory and the politics of the body through installation and portrait photography, the question becomes the conceptual spine of her latest New York presentation. The exhibition, titled ¿How Are the Children?, marks a significant moment for the Cartagena-based artist, bringing her work once again into an international conversation that moves between Latin America, the Caribbean and the wider Global South.

Rather than beginning with a grand theoretical premise, the project emerged from something quieter: an old newspaper clipping documenting the disappearance of several children on a distant island. Nearly lost among family albums and forgotten papers, the fragment offered no resolution, only a trace. For Rumié, that absence became more powerful than explanation.

The result is an exhibition that does not attempt to solve a mystery but instead inhabits a state of unresolved concern. It asks viewers to remain with discomfort rather than consume a narrative neatly packaged for closure. In a cultural moment increasingly shaped by speed, certainty and spectacle, this refusal feels deliberate.

Within the work’s imagined structure, eleven children leave behind the violences of contemporary life: the pressure to perform, the normalization of fear, and the relentless demand to adapt to adult systems of productivity and control. Their destination is a volcano, a symbol that carries both danger and possibility.

Rumié anchors that image in a distinctly Colombian geography: the Totumo Mud Volcano, located between Cartagena and Barranquilla on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. Known locally as both a tourist curiosity and a place of ancestral ritual, the volcano is less about eruption than immersion. Visitors descend into a dense crater of warm mineral mud, confronting the instinctive fear of sinking—only to discover that the body floats.

This paradox sits at the heart of the exhibition and of Rumié’s photographic narratives.

Using portrait photography staged on the sandy slopes surrounding Totumo, she transforms her young subjects into something resembling living ceramics. Their bodies, coated in volcanic mud, appear sculptural and elemental – figures suspended between portrait and artifact, between childhood and myth. The mud gives them a tactile permanence, as though they have emerged from the earth itself rather than simply stood before the camera.

Here, mud is not scenic backdrop but primary material and metaphor. It is organic and mineral, medicinal and unsettling. It obscures the body while revealing something more essential beneath the surface. Covered in mud, distinctions of age, class, gender and origin begin to dissolve. The body ceases to be an object for display and returns to its simplest state: matter.

There is a quiet political force in that gesture. In a world saturated by images and increasingly hostile standards of beauty, the act of covering oneself in mud becomes a rejection of polished performance. It resists visibility as spectacle and proposes instead a form of symbolic density—one in which the body is not consumed but encountered.

The children in Rumié’s exhibition do not perform innocence. They do not dramatize suffering for the viewer’s emotional satisfaction. Instead, they surround the volcano with calm insistence, each holding a red ribbon that descends from its summit into their hands. The ribbon suggests connection rather than rescue, lineage rather than alarm. The volcano ceases to be a site of threat and becomes something closer to a shared origin: a matrix, a beginning.

That restraint is perhaps the work’s greatest strength. Rumié avoids the familiar traps of political art that over-explains its intentions or aestheticizes trauma into digestible symbolism. Instead, she builds an atmosphere of attention. The exhibition trusts silence. It asks not for interpretation alone, but for ethical presence.

This has been a defining feature of Rumié’s extensive projects. Her work often moves between installation, photography and social intervention, examining how communities remember violence and how institutions choose to see – or not – the vulnerable. Her native Cartagena, with its layered histories of colonialism, tourism and exclusion, remains both context and counterpoint.

Showing this work in New York adds another dimension. Chelsea galleries are not typically spaces associated with collective care or recetive to questions of social reparations. Yet that friction is productive. To pose “How are the children?” in the commercial heart of the international art market is to redirect attention from value to responsibility.

It is also a reminder that contemporary Latin American art is often at its most compelling when it resists exotic labels and insists on moral complexity instead. Rumié does not offer folklore, nor easy allegory. She offers a question as elusive as the landscape itself, echoing the vast and shifting terrains once depicted by the Prussian explorer Alexander von Humboldt during his travels across the continent.

And perhaps that is Rumié’s point. The exhibition offers no definitive answers, nor any final declaration of hope or despair. Instead, it leaves visitors carrying the weight of the original inquiry – returned intact, urgent and impossible to ignore, just like a volcano.

¿How Are the Children? opens on 7 May at Nohra Haime Gallery

Nohra Haime Gallery: 500A West 21st Street, New York.

Fabio Enrique Ochoa Vasco, a former insider of the defunct Medellín Cartel, and once accused by Pablo Escobar of betrayal and marked for death, has quietly returned to Colombia after serving a prison sentence in the United States, drawing renewed attention to the discreet return of aging narcotics operatives to the country.

Ochoa Vasco, known among the cartel’s henchmen as “Kiko Pobre” or “Carlos Mario,” returned to Medellín roughly two and a half months ago after completing a nine-year prison term in the United States for drug trafficking and money laundering, according to judicial sources.

Now 65, he is reportedly living in the Antioquia capital under a low profile, far from the notoriety that once surrounded his role inside the world’s most violent cocaine empire.

His return also reflects a broader trend in Colombia, where former cartel figures, paramilitary commanders and extradited traffickers are quietly re-entering civilian life after serving lengthy prison terms abroad, often without pending criminal cases at home.

Ochoa Vasco was part of the Medellín Cartel faction led by Fernando Galeano and Gerardo Moncada, two of Escobar’s most powerful associates who controlled major cocaine routes from the municipality of Itagüí.

Known respectively as “El Negro” and “Kiko,” Galeano and Moncada were once among Escobar’s closest allies, but their relationship collapsed in 1992 when Escobar accused them of hiding millions of dollars from him while he was serving his negotiated prison sentence inside La Catedral, the luxury prison he built for himself in Envigado.

Both men were tortured and murdered inside the prison on Escobar’s orders, triggering one of the most violent internal purges in the cartel’s history.

Ochoa Vasco, who had worked closely with their network, was forced into hiding as Escobar reportedly branded him a traitor and sought to have him killed.

He later aligned himself with Los Pepes — the vigilante alliance of Escobar’s most feared enemies and whose acronymn stood for “Persecuted by Pablo Escobar”.  Escobar’s relentless campaign of car bombings and assassinations contributed to the cartel boss’s downfall before he was killed by Colombian security forces in Medellín on December 3, 1993.

But the end of Escobar did not signal the end of Ochoa Vasco’s criminal career.

According to the U.S. Department of State, he had been involved in international narcotics trafficking since the early 1980s and was allegedly responsible for sending between six and eight tons of cocaine per month from Colombia to the United States.

U.S. authorities described him as the head of a drug trafficking organization that moved multi-ton shipments of cocaine by speedboats and cargo ships from Colombia to Central America for eventual distribution in the United States.

Investigators also linked him to the now-demobilized United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, or AUC, the right-wing paramilitary organization founded by cattle ranchers in the middle Magdalena River valley, and under command of Carlos and Fidel Castaño.

In September 2004, prosecutors in the Middle District of Florida indicted Ochoa Vasco on charges of narcotics trafficking and money laundering. He also had a previous narcotics conviction in the United States and remained a fugitive on an earlier 1989 indictment from the Southern District of Florida.

He was captured in Venezuela in 2009 and extradited to the United States, where he was sentenced to nine years in prison.

With that sentence completed and no active judicial proceedings pending in Colombia, Ochoa Vasco was been able to return to Medellín without major public attention.

His case mirrors that of other former Medellín Cartel figures who have returned after decades in U.S. prisons.

Fabio Ochoa Vásquez, the youngest member of the powerful Ochoa family and one of the cartel’s best-known figures, returned to Colombia in December 2024 after serving nearly 30 years behind bars in the United States.

Now 69, he reportedly lives in Antioquia and has resumed the family’s long-standing horse breeding business.

Carlos Enrique Lehder Rivas, one of the cartel’s most eccentric members and who oversaw Pablo’s Caribbean cocaine routes, also returned to Colombia in March 2025 after serving 33 years in U.S. custody.

At 75, Lehder now moves between Bogotá and Medellín after all Colombian charges against him were closed.

One of the earliest and most infamous examples was Griselda Blanco, the so-called “Black Widow,” widely considered a pioneer of cocaine trafficking into Florida and New York during the 1970s.

After serving roughly 20 years of a U.S. sentence, she was deported to Medellín in 2004 and lived quietly there until she was shot dead by motorcycle gunmen outside a butcher shop in 2012.

The return of these figures underscores the long afterlife of Colombia’s drug wars.

Many of the men and women once at the center of cartel violence are now elderly, legally free, and living once again in the same cities where their criminal empires flourished.

For many Colombians, their quiet reintegration raises uncomfortable questions about justice, memory and how a country still marked by the legacy of narcotics violence confronts the survivors of that era.