We must win Congress. That is where change actually happens.
En el verano de 2021, el abogado penalista colombiano Miguel Ángel del Río anunció su candidatura al Senado bajo el Pacto Histórico, la coalición que respalda a Gustavo Petro para la presidencia. Su trayectoria —desde la defensa de manifestantes durante el estallido social hasta la representación de testigos clave en el proceso contra el expresidente Álvaro Uribe— lo llevó a concluir que la transformación estructural que Colombia necesita no puede lograrse desde los tribunales solos, sino que exige ganar el Congreso. Es la historia de un profesional del derecho que decide que la indiferencia ya no es una opción.
- Durante las protestas de 2021, del Río cofundó la Primera Línea Jurídica para proteger a manifestantes que enfrentaban detenciones irregulares y abusos policiales, convirtiendo la solidaridad en acción legal concreta.
- El ciclo colombiano de apatía prolongada seguida de rabia momentánea, según del Río, exige ser roto por ciudadanos con recursos profesionales y visión política clara.
- El Pacto Histórico no es solo una apuesta electoral: del Río lo concibe como el único vehículo capaz de reescribir las leyes y desmantelar décadas de políticas neoliberales desde el corazón del Congreso.
- En el caso Uribe, una orden de silencio judicial limita lo que del Río puede decir públicamente, pero anticipa que sus clientes —Monsalve y Gómez— presentarán su versión en las audiencias de octubre.
- El apoyo a Petro descansa en una convicción de coherencia histórica: frente a dos siglos de promesas vacías, Petro representa, para del Río, un compromiso sostenido con la justicia y la economía solidaria.
Miguel Ángel del Río es abogado penalista egresado de la Universidad Externado de Colombia, conocido sobre todo por representar a Juan Guillermo Monsalve y Deyanira Gómez en la investigación contra el expresidente Álvaro Uribe Vélez por presunto fraude procesal y manipulación de testigos. En el verano de 2021 dio un paso que pocos juristas de su perfil habían dado antes: anunció su candidatura al Senado bajo el Pacto Histórico, la alianza política que impulsa la candidatura presidencial de Gustavo Petro.
El salto a la política no fue repentino. Cuando Colombia se incendió en protestas ese año, del Río y otros abogados organizaron la Primera Línea Jurídica, una red de defensa legal para manifestantes víctimas de abuso policial y detenciones irregulares. La lógica era simple: el Estado había desplegado fuerza desproporcionada contra ciudadanos con décadas de necesidades insatisfechas, y alguien tenía que pararse frente a eso con herramientas jurídicas. Del Río explicó también cómo actuar si uno es detenido: avisar de inmediato a familiares —la policía está obligada a permitirlo—, denunciar cualquier abuso ante el fiscal y documentar todo con testigos.
Sobre los bloqueos que acompañaron las marchas, del Río fue matizado: como táctica de presión para obligar al gobierno a negociar, los considera estructuralmente justificados dado el historial de violencia estatal por omisión. Pero trazó un límite claro: ninguna protesta puede costar vidas en ambulancias.
Su decisión de postularse nace de una convicción más amplia: los profesionales con recursos y visión política tienen una deuda con el país. Colombia, dijo, ha vivido demasiado tiempo entre la apatía y la rabia episódica. Ese ciclo debe romperse. Y para romperlo hay que ganar el Congreso, porque es allí donde se escriben las leyes y se define la estructura del Estado. Sin mayoría legislativa, cualquier cambio profundo —el fin del neoliberalismo, una economía basada en la solidaridad— queda trunco.
En cuanto al caso Uribe, del Río guardó silencio por orden judicial. Solo anticipó que en octubre, cuando la defensa intervenga formalmente, sus clientes tendrán la palabra. Monsalve, dijo, ha dicho la verdad desde el principio. Gómez es una mujer valiente. El resto lo dirá el proceso.
Miguel Ángel del Río is a criminal lawyer with a specialty in penal sciences and criminology from Colombia's Universidad Externado. He has built a reputation defending high-stakes cases—most notably representing Juan Guillermo Monsalve and Deyanira Gómez in the ongoing investigation into former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez, who faces allegations of procedural fraud and witness manipulation. Now, in the summer of 2021, del Río is stepping into electoral politics, announcing his candidacy for the Colombian Senate under the Histórico Pact coalition, the political alliance backing presidential candidate Gustavo Petro.
The decision to run for office grew partly from del Río's work during the country's recent social upheaval. When protests erupted across Colombia in 2021, del Río and other lawyers created what they called the Primera Línea Jurídica—the First Legal Line—a legal defense network for demonstrators facing police abuse. The motivation was straightforward, del Río explained: solidarity. He saw the state deploying excessive force against citizens with legitimate grievances rooted in decades of unmet needs. The legal line was meant to be a counterweight, a juridical barrier against state overreach. Young people with nothing but their dignity deserved representation when authorities crossed the line.
When asked how ordinary citizens should respond if detained during protests, del Río outlined practical steps: notify family and friends of your location immediately—police are obligated to allow this communication. Once handed over to a prosecutor, make clear any physical abuse or violations of your rights. Bring witnesses. Document everything. The system has mechanisms; the trick is knowing how to use them.
On the question of roadblocks and disruptions that accompanied the protests, del Río offered a nuanced defense. The state, he argued, has a long history of generating violence through indifference and abuse of power. Blockades, when used as pressure tactics to force the government to negotiate, are structurally justified. But he drew a line: human rights and emergency needs—health, life itself—must always take precedence over protest tactics. The pressure must be real, but not at the cost of people dying in ambulances.
Del Río's entry into electoral politics reflects a conviction that lawyers and professionals with standing in their fields have an obligation to translate that expertise into political action. Citizens cannot remain indifferent. Politics in Colombia, he said, has been long stretches of apathy interrupted by brief bursts of rage. That cycle must break. If you have professional resources and a clear political vision, you owe it to the country to offer them.
He backs the Histórico Pact because he believes only a citizen-driven movement with real representation in Congress can reshape the state's fundamental structure. Congress, he stressed, is the cornerstone. It writes the laws and shapes policy. To win the changes Colombia needs—an end to neoliberalism, a shift toward solidarity economics, a new way of doing politics—you must win Congress first.
On the presidential race, del Río threw his support behind Gustavo Petro. Among the candidates, Petro has been consistent, del Río said. For two hundred years, Colombian politicians have sold false formulas and empty promises. Petro, by contrast, has held the same commitments: dismantling neoliberal economics, ending the selfish, greedy practices that have defined Colombian politics, building something based on justice and solidarity. That alignment—between Petro's vision and del Río's own convictions about law and social change—made the choice clear.
On the Uribe case itself, del Río was constrained. A judge had imposed a gag order to prevent parallel trials in the media. He could say only that his clients—Monsalve and Gómez—would have their say in October when the defense team formally intervenes. Monsalve has told the truth from the start, del Río said. Gómez is a brave woman. The details would come later, in court.
Citas Notables
The state has generated violence through indifference and abuse of power. Blockades, when used as pressure to force negotiation, are structurally justified—but human rights and emergency needs must always come first.— Miguel Ángel del Río, on protest tactics
Gustavo Petro has been consistent in his commitments: ending neoliberalism, ending the selfish practices that have defined Colombian politics, building something based on justice and solidarity.— Miguel Ángel del Río, on his presidential endorsement
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
You created this legal defense network during the protests. Was that a political move, or did it feel like something else?
It felt like necessity. When you see the state using force against people asking for basic things—healthcare, work, dignity—and you have the tools to help, you use them. The politics came later, when I realized the system itself needed changing.
You're defending witnesses in the Uribe case while running for Senate. Doesn't that create a conflict?
The court has already told me I can't speak about it publicly. But no—defending people in court and running for office are both about the same thing: making sure the system works for everyone, not just the powerful.
You say Congress is the cornerstone. Why not the presidency?
A president without Congress is just a person with a title. Congress writes the laws. Congress shapes what's actually possible. You can have the best intentions in the world, but if the legislature won't move, nothing changes.
Petro has been called radical. Are you worried about that label?
Radical compared to what? Two hundred years of the same failed policies? What's radical is expecting different results from the same approach. Petro is consistent—that's what matters.
When you tell protesters how to respond to arrest, you're teaching them to work within a system you're also trying to change.
Yes. Because the system has rules, and those rules can protect you if you know how to use them. But the rules themselves need to change. You use what exists while you build what should exist.