Turning Over Hacienda Nápoles to Farmers, as Proposed by Petro, Could Expose the State to a Multimillion-Dollar Lawsuit
Real Estate attorney Esteban García was quoted in an El Colombiano article about Colombian President Gustavo Petro's announcement that he will give farmers control of Hacienda Nápoles, a 3,000-hectare tract of land located in Antioquia. Mr. García explained that Hacienda Nápoles is not eligible to be included in government-led land redistribution or rural property reform programs because its land use designation and legal status do not meet the program criteria. He noted that such initiatives generally target rural land that can be used for agricultural purposes and have specific legal procedures for expropriation or redistribution, which do not apply in this case. Mr. García also warned that any governmental attempt to reverse the legitimate transfer of the property to the municipality could compromise legal certainty and constitutional principles such as local autonomy, while existing contracts could expose the state to costly compensation claims if breached.
"Within this contractual framework, the state has undertaken obligations, and failing to fulfill them could generate liabilities for both the municipality and the nation. Any compensation would have to cover not only the investments made, but also the lost profits resulting from a possible closure of the park," he said.