Colombia Controversy Over Medellin Mayor’s Ban on M-19 Book Launch

Written on 04/23/2026
Josep Freixes
Controversy in Colombia following the mayor of Medellin’s cancellation of a book launch event for a book about the M-19 guerrilla group. Credit: Medellin Mayor’s Office / John Acosta, CC BY-SA 4.0 / Wikimedia.

The Medellin mayor’s office ordered this week the cancellation of the presentation of a book about the M-19 guerrilla at a public library in the city, an event that had been scheduled for some time and had originally been processed without administrative obstacles.

The decision, taken at the last minute, has sparked a political and cultural debate over the limits of institutional intervention in academic activities and has prompted, in some sectors, accusations of censorship against the local leader.

In fact, the case has triggered reactions across different sectors, which question whether it was a justified administrative measure or, indeed, an act of censorship against a cultural event.

The controversy has escalated to the national level, with statements from political figures, including President Gustavo Petro, and has reopened the discussion on how to address the memory of the armed conflict in public spaces.

Colombia controversy over Medellin Mayor’s ban on M-19 book launch

The cancellation affected the presentation of the book “M-19: From War to Politics,” by sociologist Jaime Rafael Nieto, scheduled at the Piloto Public Library. The order was issued by Mayor Federico Gutierrez shortly before the start of the event.

From the municipal administration, it was argued that the activity could be interpreted as a form of glorification of an armed group and that, moreover, it had a political component incompatible with the electoral context.

The mayor defended his decision by stating that public institutions must avoid endorsing content that could be offensive to victims of the conflict. He also insisted that the measure does not prevent the circulation of the book, but rather limits the use of official spaces for its promotion.

“This event is canceled. In Medellin, there will never be space for the glorification of terrorism. I have just ordered the cancellation of this event at the Piloto Public Library. The M-19 was not a ‘romantic narrative’: it was a terrorist armed group that left victims, pain, and death in Colombia,” the mayor wrote on his X social media account.

Gutierrez justified his decision by arguing that the “event has an evidently political nature and no public entity can host it, also due to the electoral guarantees law,” in addition to holding the library’s management responsible for having authorized the event. “It is unacceptable that someone at the library would have allowed this agenda,” he said.

Despite the cancellation, the event ultimately took place in an alternative format, with attendees who questioned the intervention of the mayor’s office and considered it an undue restriction on academic debate.

The book is a study that analyzes the political trajectory of the M-19 during its existence as an armed group and its subsequent transformation into a political movement, between the 1970s and 1990s, published by the Desde Abajo imprint. Its author, Jaime Rafael Nieto Lopez, is a sociologist, holds a master’s degree in Political Science from the University of Antioquia, and a Ph.D. in Political Thought, Democracy, and Citizenship from Pablo de Olavide University in Spain.

Accusations of censorship and political reaction

The decision sparked criticism from academic, cultural, and political sectors. Various voices pointed out that preventing the presentation of a research book constitutes a violation of freedom of expression and the right to discuss the country’s recent past in public spaces.

The author of the book defended the analytical nature of his work and rejected the idea that it could be interpreted as an apology for violence. He stated that his objective is to examine the process of transformation of the M-19 from armed struggle to political participation.

President Gustavo Petro also spoke out and questioned the actions of the mayor’s office, arguing that they limit pluralism and debate. The mayor responded by reiterating that his decision seeks to prevent the political instrumentalization of institutional spaces.

The Colombian president, who in his youth was part of the armed group, reminded the mayor that “the M-19, after making peace, is a legal movement with legal status” and accused Gutierrez of carrying out an act of “censorship against a book. Those who censor books end up burning them in bonfires and later end up burning human beings in bonfires.”

The controversy continued throughout yesterday, and Mayor Gutierrez responded to these statements by the Colombian president, denying the political connotations of what in its time emerged as an illegal armed organization.

“Petro, no matter how much you try to keep rewriting Colombia’s history, the M-19, which you were part of, was a terrorist group that murdered, kidnapped, and tortured,” said the conservative politician, who in 2022 faced off against Gustavo Petro and other candidates in the country’s presidential elections that would ultimately give victory to the first leftist president in Colombia’s history.

M-19, from insurgency to politics

The April 19 Movement (M-19) emerged in the 1970s amid challenges to Colombia’s political system, following electoral manipulation that handed victory in the April 19, 1970 elections to the ruling establishment, against the actual result that gave the win to General Rojas Pinilla, a former dictator of the country in the 1950s.

In response to this event, and after the state closed off political and democratic options for the opposition, a group of young people created an urban armed organization—therefore distinct from traditional guerrillas such as the FARC or the ELN—characterized by high-impact actions and a strategy that combined symbolic and military elements, without territorial control like earlier guerrillas.

Among the most remembered events are the theft of Simon Bolivar’s sword in 1974 and the nearly two-month takeover of the Dominican Republic embassy in 1980, an action that ended with a peaceful resolution following an agreement with the government of Julio Cesar Turbay.

A worse outcome marked what is likely the most remembered action of the illegal armed group: the 1985 takeover of the Palace of Justice. This controversial operation had severe consequences in terms of victims, in a dark episode that is still debated today, with questions over whether the 100 deaths were caused by the armed group or by the disproportionate and brutal response of the army, which retook the building by force.

By the late 1980s, deeply weakened and under new leadership, the group began a negotiation process with the state that culminated in its demobilization in 1990. After laying down its arms, M-19 entered legal political life and took part in the 1991 Constituent Assembly, which gave rise to the current Constitution.

That process is seen by some as an example of transition, while others view it from a critical perspective, and it unfolded even after the assassination of Carlos Pizarro in April 1990, the last commander of M-19 and presidential candidate of the new democratic party into which the former guerrilla had transformed.

What is clear is that the scope of the controversy has much to do with the fact that among the former members of M-19 is Colombia’s current president, Gustavo Petro. More than three decades later, the legacy of M-19 continues to be debated in the country, as shown by the recent controversy in Medellin and the refusal of certain sectors to address historical memory and the challenge of confronting a traumatic past.