“Francia never really had her own aesthetic because she was so focused on her struggle, so it was great to work with her in creating one without losing her essence.”ĭespite the groundswell of support for Márquez and Petro in marginalised communities and many cities, the pair will face an unenviable array of challenges in office. “Red is what we use when we want to create that impact of the strength of a woman from the Pacific,” said Sinisterra. The designer said Márquez’s outfits, brightly coloured and patterned, reflected Afro-Colombian traditions. “I was one of those few young Colombians able to escape the war.” “So many armed groups were around, we didn’t even know which was which, but my family knew we had to leave,” the designer said. Sinisterra was forced to flee his home in Colombia’s south-western Nariño province as a young boy when fighting between rival groups grew too intense. Other rebel groups, such as the still-active National Liberation Army (ELN), state-aligned paramilitaries, and Colombian security forces, have also committed atrocities.Ī peace deal signed with Farc in 2016 was supposed to usher in development to rural communities, but instead other armed groups – leftist and rightist in ideology, but united by their involvement in the drug trade – have moved in and are now jostling for territory. Like Márquez, Sinisterra was displaced by Colombia’s conflict with leftist rebel groups including the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), which has roiled the countryside for decades, taking over 260,000 lives and forcing seven million from their homes. Márquez, a single mother and former domestic worker, won the prestigious Goldman prize in 2018 for her activism against a goldmine in her village, having led 80 women on a 350-mile march to Bogotá. “Nobodies like us and Francia were never taken into account, but now we know we can achieve so much when we work collectively.” “Their victory made me really believe in democracy,” said Sinisterra. Much of her support often stems from not being a typical politician, fair-skinned and from wealthy political and business stock.
Like Petro – who was a member of the now-defunct M-19 rebel group in his youth – Márquez is viewed as a firebrand outsider. His campaign was bolstered by the addition of Márquez, 40, to the ticket, who made headlines worldwide when she became Petro’s running mate in March. When Petro takes office today, it will be the first time that the conservative South American country is governed by a leftist. Sinisterra and millions of other voters got his wish on the evening of 16 June when Gustavo Petro, 62 – an ex-guerrilla and the former mayor of Bogotá, the capital – won the presidency after a long and bitter campaign to pry power from the country’s political elites. Designer Esteban Sinisterra Paz: ‘Nobodies like us and Francia were never taken into account, but now we know that we can achieve so much.’ Photograph: The Washington Post/Getty Images
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