International

Future Colombian Minister of the Interior: We will explore the future possibility of the Constituent Assembly

The future Minister of the Interior of Colombia, Juan Fernando Cristo, assured on the date, when his appointment was announced, that he will assume the portfolio with the purpose of seeking a national agreement that allows to explore “the possibility” of convening a National Constituent Assembly, an idea of President Gustavo Petro.

Christ, who was Minister of the Interior during the mandate of Juan Manuel Santos (2010-2018), assured in a statement that one of his fundamental purposes will be “the search for a true national agreement that allows the possibility of convening a National Constituent Assembly under the parameters of the Constitution of ’91 to be explored in the future.”

Thus, next week he will begin to talk to all sectors, such as allies, opposition, high courts, unions, guilds and employers.

The purpose is “to see if we finally achieve a national agreement that eventually can or not – and that will arise from the conversations – end in the Constituent Assembly that would not be convened or elected, it would be a process that begins now and that if we reach a national political agreement it would be elected in the next Government, not in this Government.”

Petro has been outlining in public events the idea of a Constituent Assembly that allows the inclusion of the social reforms proposed by his Government and that are bogged down in Congress.

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However, in the latest statements, instead of talking about convening a National Constituent Assembly, he has mentioned that it must be the people themselves who ask for it, as a primary constituent.

Christ himself, a traditional liberal politician who was a senator for 16 years (1998-2014), Minister of the Interior between 2014 and 2017 and delegate of the Government in the peace negotiations with the FARC, had shown himself in statements on his social networks against the Constituent Assembly saying that it is “unfeasible.”

But now it is open to this possibility if there is a national consensus for it and in a future legislature, which would mean that it would not be Petro who would carry it forward.

Christ, who will replace Luis Fernando Velasco, another liberal, led as a minister the Constitutional Reform of Balance of Powers that eliminated presidential re-election and, as a senator, was the author of the Law on Victims and Restitution of Lands. In addition, he led the agenda for implementing the peace agreement with the extinct FARC.

Among its purposes precisely, in addition to seeking the national agreement, will be the implementation of the peace agreement signed in 2016, in addition to “deepening the territorial autonomy of Colombia” and of course promoting the Government’s legislative agenda.

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“In the coming days we will meet with all the ministers, those who are coming and the incoming ones, and with the president of the Republic to define the priorities of that legislative agenda, within which there will undoubtedly be the labor reform, the health reform and a new effort to bring forward the statutory law of Education,” said the new Minister of the Interior.

Christ is the last addition to Petro’s cabinet for the second half of his mandate.

Petro also announced in recent days changes in the ministries of Justice, where Néstor Osuna will be replaced by criminal lawyer Ángela María Buitrago; in Agriculture, where Jhenifer Mojica will be replaced by Martha Carvajalino, and in Transport, from which William Camargo leaves and María Constanza García arrives.

International

Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.

During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.

“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.

“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”

Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.

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On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.

International

Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition

he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.

Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.

Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”

International

Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may

The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.

The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”

The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”

Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.

The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.