Report multiple disappearances after protests 2:40
(CNN Spanish) -
The Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported this Friday that it declared an official of the Cuban Embassy accredited in that country persona non grata, a decision criticized by Cuban authorities, who described it as "unfounded."
The Colombian Foreign Ministry argues in a series of tweets that it made the decision after verifying that the diplomat, who does not identify, was carrying out activities "incompatible with the provisions of the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations."
"Despite these circumstances, Colombia's purpose is to privilege the diplomatic and cooperative relationship with the Republic of Cuba," concludes the explanation, without offering details about the alleged activities of the diplomat.
The diplomat appointed by Bogotá is the first secretary Omar Rafael García Lazo, as revealed by the director general of Latin America and the Caribbean of the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Eugenio Martínez Enríquez.
CNN contacted the press department of the Colombian Foreign Ministry to obtain more information, where they indicated that for the moment the data available are those that appear on their Twitter account.
CNN also contacted the Cuban Embassy in Bogotá and is still waiting for a response.
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Cuba says the decision "seeks to divert attention" from "violent repression" in Colombia
Also through Twitter, Martínez Enríquez described the decision as "unfounded".
He also considered that it is an "unfriendly" act that affects the normal functioning of the Cuban embassy in Colombia.
Martínez Enríquez said that they summoned the Colombian ambassador to Havana to communicate with a verbal note their "energetic protest."
Martínez Enríquez assures that Cuban diplomats fulfill "seriously and rigorously" their obligations established in the Vienna Convention.
"We demand that the alleged reasons for this unusual decision be exposed," he claimed.
For the Cuban Foreign Ministry, the decision "seeks to divert the attention of the international community from the violent repression of the military and police forces against the protesters that has caused dozens of deaths and hundreds of injuries," as indicated in a tweet.
They denounce that police attack civilian clothes 1:59
The crossing between Colombia and Cuba occurs within the framework of the tenth day of protests against the government of President Iván Duque for the proposal of a tax reform, which has already been withdrawn from Congress by the Executive.