Maduro’s National Constituent Assembly in Venezuela this past Sunday has provided an opportunity for Colombia’s candidates for the 2018 presidential election to clarify their positions with respect to their neighbor. The crisis has also provided an opportunity for the candidates to differentiate themselves, and two of the country’s leading candidates did battle on Twitter over the topic.
Claudia López started the discussion on social media by sharing an article on Twitter from La Silla Vacía titled, “Petro and his defense for Maduro’s Constituent Assembly“.
Que vayan quedando claras las diferencias. Unos condenamos la dictadura de Maduro en Venezuela y otros la defienden. Imposible coincidir https://t.co/w0istYl0pm
— Claudia López Hernández (@ClaudiaLopez) August 1, 2017
“Let the differences become clear. Some of us condemn Maduro’s dictatorship in Venezuela, while others defend it. Impossible to agree”, the presidential candidate declared on Twitter.
Petro replied to her with a question, asking, “If you were president, would you infringe the right of self-determination of other countries as commanded by our Constitution?”. López quickly replied that she wouldn’t justify a dictatorship for any reason, unlike him, not even by the principle of self-determination. “Total rejection for any dictatorship”, she added.
Significa que a diferencia tuya no justificaré una dictadura en nombre de la autodeterminación ni de nada. Rechazo absoluto a toda dictadura https://t.co/FqQuJUIM6I
— Claudia López Hernández (@ClaudiaLopez) August 2, 2017
Petro then told López not to resort to deceitful interpretations of his words by the media, but to use his own words. He also referenced an image from “La W” which said, “neither with the opposition nor with the government”, alluding to his expressed position, and further alleging the right of autonomy of every country. To this, Miss López posted “Blah, blah, blah, mere verbosity not to condemn and to ingratiate himself with a dictatorship supported by leftist and old revolutionary ideas“.
Bla, bla, bla para no condenar y congraciarse con una dictadura por solidaridades trasnochadas de izquierda indeseables para Colombia y Vzla https://t.co/09eolwFLWZ
— Claudia López Hernández (@ClaudiaLopez) August 2, 2017
Mr. Petro replied again that by saying “Blah, Blah, Blah” she didn’t answer to his position, but rather “ended the debate without any arguments“. He then sent his “advice” for López, posting a quote of Martin Luther King which said that “popular opinion” wasn’t always the best, and that “unpopular and unsafe decisions” sometimes were the best for people.
Con decir bla, bla, bla como argumento, no responde a mi posición, solo cierra el debate sin argumentos @ClaudiaLopez .Le dejó este consejo pic.twitter.com/obqXHzn96l
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) August 2, 2017
Claudia López led Colombia Focus’ most recent 2018 presidential poll, and has gained popularity for her tough stand against political corruption.
