The Colombian State Council, with Magistrate Gerardo Arenas in charge, made the decision on Thursday to accept a request by ex-Bogota Mayor, Gustavo Petro, to be reinstated. The council, one of Colombia’s highest courts, will not pass judgement on the request however until the Inspector General’s Office, which removed Petro in the first place, has imparted its opinion.
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The State Council is conducting its own investigation into the dismissal of the Bogota Mayor with President Santos already having stated that if the council was to rule the dismissal to be unlawful, he would reinstate Petro.
MORE: Santos vows to reinstate dismissed Bogota Mayor if Colombian court orders to do so
The Petro case has recently come under scrutiny with regards to President Juan Manuel’s Santos’ decision to enforce Petro’s dismissal despite human rights organizations stating that to do so would be in breach of the mayor’s fundamental political rights.
The head of state’s decision has led to questions regarding whether it is obligatory or optional for Colombia to follow rulings made by the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights (IACHR).
MORE: The little engine that could: Constitutional Court speaks out in favor of Petro and IACHR
Ex-Bogota Mayor, Gustavo Petro was removed from office and banned from politics for 15 years over supposed “irregularities” that occurred during his attempts to transfer the city’s private garbage collection system into public hands.
The State Council has already, on March 18, 2014, agreed to the dismissal of Petro but decided to re-investigate the case after questions arose around the validity of the decision.