Petro labels Trump's policies as 'fascism': 'Those who fail the race test are beaten'

Petro criticized US President Donald Trump’s practices regarding immigrants, comparing these policies to 'fascism'. In a statement to a private television channel, the Colombian leader emphasized that the US is portraying immigrants as criminals and that this approach is dangerous.

Noting that it is not right to 'declare immigrants criminals', Petro opposed Trump's practices with the following words:

''I cannot label every white American as an exploiter. Similarly, declaring a race or a religious group as criminals is similar to what happened in Germany in 1933. This type of approach resulted in the death of six million people.''

Stating that violent raids against immigrants in the US have increased, Petro expressed the following:

'Today, it is not people's documents that are being checked on the streets, but their faces. Those who fail the race test are beaten. This is a fascist practice born from an old racism.'

Colombian President Gustavo Petro

COMPARED TRUMP TO HITLER

In a statement he made on January 30, Petro had also compared the US methods of deporting irregular immigrants to 'concentration camps'. There has been tension between the two leaders for some time due to immigration policies.

When asked by a journalist whether Trump is a fascist, Petro replied, ''It shows similarities to Hitler's method of gaining public support by targeting Jews and socialists in 1933''.

Petro also said that Trump was misinformed about him. Stating, 'Trump has never spoken to me. He doesn't know what I think, and he doesn't really know what I know', the Colombian leader underlined that some Colombians living in the US portray him as a 'communist bogeyman'.

Illegal immigrants in the US are deported from the country after being transferred to 'detention centers'