Follow-Up: Petro's Daughters Speak Out on Contracts-for-Sex Allegations: Claims Must Be Taken Seriously, Truth Is for the Courts to Establish
Sofia Petro and Antonella Petro, daughters of former Colombian President Gustavo Petro, issued a joint public letter on Nov. 8 speaking out for the first time on the allegations that their father traded government contracts for sexual relations. The letter, published by Sofia Petro Alcocer on X, sets out their position as feminists, as left-wing women and as daughters: allegations made by women must be taken seriously no matter who they are made against, those who come forward need protection, and the investigations should move forward swiftly and with a gender perspective.
In the letter, the two women explicitly rejected attacks on the accuser, Deicy Jimenez, and her revictimization. Jimenez told Semana magazine on Oct. 25 that she and roughly 30 to 40 other women had received contracts from state entities in exchange for sexual relations; public contracting records show she held 10 government contracts between 2022 and 2026. On Nov. 4 she posted an intimate video of herself with Petro on Instagram, saying it proved she was telling the truth. The Attorney General's Office, the Inspector General's Office and the Supreme Court of Justice have all become involved: the Inspector General opened a preliminary inquiry on Oct. 26, and Supreme Court president Mauricio Lenis confirmed on Nov. 6 that the court had opened a confidential preliminary inquiry.
As daughters, the two said they believe their father is not corrupt where public funds are concerned and trust that, as he has said himself, he will appear before the justice system without delay; but they stressed that the truth can only be established by the courts, not declared by the family. They also noted that their father has faced feminist criticism from them at home for macho behaviour, and that they would not set aside their principles for family ties.
Petro himself denied the allegations in a statement on X on Oct. 25, saying he had never awarded a government contract in exchange for sexual favours, that the video had not been examined by any judicial expert and its date was unknown, and that he would defend himself before judges rather than on social media. The case remains at the preliminary inquiry stage and no charges have been established.
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(Source: Joint Statement by Sofia and Antonella Petro)
Source: Joint Statement by Sofia and Antonella Petro
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：哥伦比亚前总统佩特罗官方肖像（资料图）。哥伦比亚总统府官方摄影，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons，本站档案图复用。 / Photo: Official portrait of former Colombian President Gustavo Petro (file photo). By the Presidency of Colombia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. GSM archive image reused.
