Bogotá, December 15 (Prensa Latina) – Colombian writers Laura Restrepo and Giuseppe Caputo declined to attend the Hay Festival Cartagena de Indias 2026 due to the participation in the event of Venezuelan María Corina Machado, who currently holds a contested Nobel Peace Prize.
Restrepo sent a letter to the event’s director, Cristina de la Fuerte, in which she expressed that her cancellation was because of the attendance of the opponent of Nicolás Maduro’s government, whom she described as an “active supporter of the United States military intervention in Latin America.”
Although she acknowledged that it had been a pleasure to participate multiple times in the Hay Festival, she considered that “inviting Mrs. Machado as a speaker has been crossing the line.”
“One cannot give a platform and audience to someone like Mrs. Machado, who promotes positions and activities in favor of the subjugation of our peoples and against the sovereignty of our countries. Imperialist intervention is not up for discussion; it must be rejected without reservation,” the novelist stated.
On the other hand, Caputo communicated through his Instagram account that he considers “the hype around a politician who functions as a legitimizer of a military invasion, allied with genocidaires, fascists, and war criminals like Trump and Netanyahu, a serious problem.”
The poet concluded that, “given the serious situation of increasing imperial violence, it is better to cancel participation in a festival that takes place in front of the bombarded waters of the Caribbean Sea and has decided to invite someone who dedicated a peace prize to the fascist responsible for these crimes.”
Some Colombian intellectuals, such as former Minister of Culture Juan David Correa, supported the authors’ decision.
“All my support to Laura Restrepo, Giuseppe Caputo, and all the colleagues who have resigned from participating in the Hay Festival. And to all those who believe that freedom of expression is one thing, and inviting someone to disregard national sovereignty is another,” he wrote on his X account.
Following the dissemination of Caputo’s decision, journalist Gonzalo Guillén considered that the decision represents a rejection of Machado’s presence, whom he called “promoter of genocide in Gaza and accomplice of Trump’s massacres in the Caribbean.”
According to press reports, Dominican writer Mikelah Drullard will also not attend the Hay Festival Cartagena de Indias 2026, which will be held from January 29 to February 1 in its 21st edition in the eponymous northern Colombian city.
“I cannot attend an event where, without the slightest concern, pro-genocide and interventionist positions are supported through the mobilization of those who promote them,” she shared on social media regarding Machado’s presence.
