Petro Says Cartagena’s Tourism Collapsed. The Numbers Say Otherwise.
COLOMBIA · POLITICS
Key Facts
- —The accusation Former president Gustavo Petro blamed Abelardo De la Espriella for destroying tourism in Cartagena.
- —The wording By his violence and necropolitical love he ended up finishing off tourism in Cartagena.
- —When Around 9 and 10 September, on social media, responding to a video about a supposed fall in visitors.
- —The data Cartagena recorded 3.3 million visitors in the first half of 2026.
- —Air arrivals Up 3.8 percent year on year.
- —Land arrivals Up 25.1 percent year on year.
The claim is that Cartagena’s tourism collapsed. The city’s own figures say arrivals rose in both directions.
Gustavo Petro accused his successor of destroying tourism in Cartagena, in a social media post responding to a video about falling visitor numbers. The official figures do not support it.
What Was Said
Petro’s post, published around 9 and 10 September, states that Abelardo De la Espriella, by his violence and necropolitical love, ended up finishing off tourism in Cartagena.
It responded to a circulating video claiming a decline in visitors to the city.
The language is characteristic. Necropolitics is a term from academic political theory, and Petro has used it repeatedly to describe security policies built around force.
What the Figures Show
Official Cartagena tourism statistics record 3.3 million visitors in the first half of 2026.
Air passenger arrivals rose 3.8 percent year on year over the same period. Land arrivals rose 25.1 percent.
Neither series supports a collapse, and the land figure in particular suggests the opposite, since domestic overland tourism is the segment most sensitive to perceived insecurity on the roads.
That does not mean nothing has changed. Half-year totals can conceal a sharp turn in the most recent weeks, and De la Espriella took office on 7 August, which falls outside the period the data covers.
Why the Exchange Matters Anyway
Cartagena is Colombia’s principal international tourism destination and a significant share of the country’s foreign-currency earnings from services.
A former president asserting that the sector has collapsed is not a neutral act. Tourism demand responds to perception, and public claims about safety from a figure with Petro’s standing carry beyond Colombian politics.
The Rio Times reports the claim as what it is: a political statement, made without supporting data, against figures that point the other way.
Whether the second half of 2026 produces different numbers is the question the argument will eventually be settled on, and those figures are not yet published.
What Actually Happened to Cartagena This Year
The half-year figures are the only official series available, and they show growth on both arrival channels.
Cartagena’s tourism is unusually split between international cruise and air arrivals on one side and domestic overland visitors on the other. The 25.1 percent rise in land arrivals is the number that cuts hardest against a security-driven collapse thesis, because road travel is the first thing domestic tourists abandon when they feel unsafe.
None of that says the city has no security problem. Cartagena has persistent issues with street crime, extortion of small businesses and the exploitation that surrounds its tourism economy, and those predate every recent government.
The Shape of the Argument
Petro and De la Espriella represent opposite answers to Colombian insecurity, and the exchange over Cartagena is a proxy for that.
Petro’s Paz Total sought negotiated settlements with armed and criminal structures simultaneously. De la Espriella revoked the negotiating delegations to the ELN and the Clan del Golfo on 9 September and closed the Putumayo location zone.
A former president arguing that his successor’s approach is destroying the tourism economy is making the case that force costs more than it delivers. It is a legitimate argument, and it needs data that the published figures do not currently supply.
The second-half numbers, covering De la Espriella’s time in office, are the ones that will test it.
More: Colombia news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Petro say?
That De la Espriella, by his violence and necropolitical love, finished off tourism in Cartagena. He posted it around 9 and 10 September 2026.
What do the figures show?
Cartagena recorded 3.3 million visitors in the first half of 2026, with air arrivals up 3.8 percent and land arrivals up 25.1 percent.
Do the numbers cover the current government?
No. De la Espriella took office on 7 August 2026, after the period the half-year data covers.
Is there evidence of a decline?
Not in the published official figures. The claim rests on a circulating video rather than on data.
Why does it matter?
Cartagena is Colombia’s main international tourism destination, and public claims about safety influence demand.
Sources: Colombia.com, Rio Noticias.
This article was drafted with automated assistance and reviewed before publication. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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