Colombia's president at a rally calls for a special election on labor and health reforms

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — President Gustavo Petro urged supporters Tuesday to “rebel” against centrist and right-wing politicians who have blocked efforts to reform Colombia’s health system and labor laws, as the nation prepares for congressional and presidential elections next year.

During a protest organized by labor unions on Tuesday, Petro gave a half-hour speech in which he said his government will press ahead with plans to organize a special election. The plebiscite will enable voters to approve or reject health and labor legislation that has languished in Congress due to a lack of consensus from political parties.

“The people have made lots of sacrifices to be governed now by monarchs and tyrants,” Petro said of the members of congress who have opposed his reforms. “They want to exploit humans because they have sold their heart to greed.”

Petro, the South American nation's first leftist president, has struggled to get legislation passed in the Senate, where his Historical Pact movement only has a fifth of all seats.

Petro gave national government workers the day off Tuesday so they could join protests in favor of the special election, while government agencies promoted the protests on their social media feeds and through television ads.

On Tuesday, thousands of people joined a protest in Bogota’s historic Bolivar Square, where Petro was the main speaker. In a fiery tone, the president urged voters to “punish” members of Congress whom he accused of legislating in favor of corporations, and of succumbing to “corruption and greed.”

The special election the government plans to hold is known as a popular consultation in Colombian law, and requires Senate approval. For its results to be implemented, one third of all registered voters must participate, or around 13 million people.

Political analysts in Colombia say that it will be hard for Petro’s government to convince enough voters to turn out for the election. The president was elected in 2022, with 11.2 million votes.

But some analysts have said that the special election can help the government energize its supporters before congressional elections in March. The special election also enables the national government to campaign for its causes, using public funds.

“The government is trying to shift the blame away from itself for its inability to reach consensus” in Congress, said Sergio Guzman, a political analyst in Bogota. “And it is now using the reforms as a central cause for why it should get another four years in power.”

During his presidential campaign in 2022, Petro promised he would transform Colombia’s health system by eliminating insurance companies that handle obligatory social security payments and putting a government agency in charge of administering those funds.

Petro has accused insurance companies of mishandling millions of dollars. But his health reform has been turned down several times by legislators who argue it would give too much power to government bureaucrats and say the government does not have the capacity to administer millions of patients.

Petro has also proposed increasing pay for nocturnal workers, and making it harder for companies to hire workers on short-term contracts, through his labor reform package. But the labor reform was set aside Tuesday during a crucial committee vote. Its critics have argued it will lead to unemployment, by making it more expensive for companies to hire workers.

More than 55% of Colombians work in the informal economy, without any labor contracts. Critics of Petro’s reforms say that legislation proposed by the president gives companies few incentives to hire these informal workers.