Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro is facing criticism from press freedom groups after some comments made about female reporters, calling them “dolls of the mafia” in one of the most dangerous countries for journalists in South America.
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Without a hint of irony, Petro made the statement at the August 30 inauguration of Colombia’s new human rights ombud Iris Marin – the first woman to hold the job.
Petro, the South American country’s first-ever leftist president, has often bristled at criticism from the media, which he has accused of conspiring with armed groups, tycoons or other powerful figures.
Some say he has now gone too far in a country where dozens of threats and attacks of various types are reported against women reporters every year.
In his address, Petro had railed against “the [women] journalists of power, the ‘dolls of the mafia,’” who he said had pilloried 2019-2021 protests against the rightwing government that preceded him.