What is happening in Colombia and why the protests are not ending

Thousands of people returned to the streets of Colombia on Wednesday to protest against the government of President Iván Duque at the end of a week of protests that turned violent and left at least 24 dead, most of them by gunshot.

Under the magnifying glass of the international community – which denounced excess of public force, students, unions, natives and other sectors took to the streets of the capital Bogotá, as well as Medellín to the northwest and Cali to the southwest.

The trigger was the rejection of the tax reform promoted by Iván Duque’s government. But the range of discontent was wider, so It did not decrease after the president announced he was withdrawing the tax bill and that he was ready to negotiate a new one with the opposition and other political actors. The statements are varied: better conditions in terms of health, education, security in the regions, cessation of police abuses against demonstrations, among others.

The mobilizations were mostly peaceful, but in some towns they turned violent. According to official figures, until Tuesday at least 24 people died (18 by gunshot), more than 800 were injured and 89 are missing. The Oneges denounce that the police fired on demonstrators and that the death toll exceeds 30 people. Authorities also register three police officers with gunshot wounds.

Thus, what started as a peaceful protest on April 28 to reject a tax reform that had already been withdrawn has become the biggest protest against the Conservative government since taking office in 2018.

International condemnation

The pressure in the streets does not give way, before vigilance of the international community which he denounced police attacks on civilians. The UN, European Union, United States, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have called for calm and demanded government guarantees amid protests. According to Reporters Without Borders, 76 attacks were also perpetrated against journalists, including 10 injured by the security forces.

Bogotá had a tense night on Tuesday. Thirty citizens and 16 police officers were injured after clashes with soldiers that left 25 police stations affected, according to the local mayor’s office. Violence also erupted in Cali on Monday, leaving five dead and thirty injured.

According to the prosecution, behind the excesses, there are FARC dissidents who have strayed from the peace agreement signed in 2016; the ELN, the last recognized guerrilla in Colombia, and drug gangs.

“The threat of vandalism we are facing consists of a criminal organization hiding behind legitimate social aspirations to destabilize society, generate terror among citizens and distract the actions of law enforcement,” said on Wednesday President Duque.

For his part, Ecuadorian President Lenín Moreno said Infobae this Wednesday that the Ecuadorian intelligence service “ detected a Maduro’s political and economic interference in Colombia ”.

“I think it’s important for everyone to tell Maduro right now to get his bloody and abusive hands off Colombia. Colombia is a wonderful country, in which without a doubt it must have problems, without a doubt there must be people complaining about this decision of President Duque. But you have to recognize the violence. And I would never want to interpret violence as social protest. Violence must not be part of international politics, ”said Lenín Moreno in a report at the“ Defense of Democracy in the Americas ”forum.

Duque asks for a “dialogue”

In addition to mobilisations and riots, roadblocks are added. Some cities like Cali are seeing gasoline shortages and worrying about trucks passing by with medical supplies amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Duque assured that he would open “spaces for dialogue” to listen to citizens. The government is planning eleven meetings to begin this Tuesday with courts, Congress, oversight bodies and the prosecution, without yet including protest leaders.

The so-called Unemployment Committee, which brings together non-compliant sectors, was open to direct negotiation without intermediaries.

The Defense Ministry deployed 47,500 troops across the country during the protests. In Cali alone, there are 700 soldiers, 500 riot control (Esmad), 1,800 police and two additional helicopters. Since the weekend, the soldiers have also been patrolling the capital.

With popularity plummeting (33%), the president has faced massive protests since 2019, plagued by discontent fueled by the pandemic in a country suffering from more than half a century of armed conflict.

Last Monday, President Duque withdrew the tax reform initiative presented on April 15 and the finance minister resigned.

But post-conflict unrest seemed to set in one of the most unequal countries on the continent, with an unemployment rate of 16.8% and poverty reaching 42.5% of the population, according to official figures.

With tax reform frustrated, the Duque government aspired to raise 23.4 billion pesos (about $ 6,302 million) to improve public finances and ensure continuity of social programs for the poorest.

The current Minister of Finance, José Manuel Restrepo, has already indicated that the new reform project will be less ambitious, of the order of 14 trillion pesos (approximately $ 3,656 million), and unlike the previous one, it will not propose an increase in VAT (19%) on goods and services so as not to affect the “sectors sensitive ”like the middle and lower classes, and the tax base will not be widened to those who earn the least.

Colombia has a problem with tax reforms and that is that they are usually designed with a short-term view, to tackle cyclical issues, such as the effects of the pandemic, and the one that set the country on fire has been number 15 since 1991, which means that every two years there is a discussion like this.

The Colombian economy enjoys the confidence of the financial markets, based on its orthodox management of finances, but recent protests have brought to light a little-known face of the country, that of millions of people who maneuver daily to survive. Situation aggravated by the Coronavirus pandemic.

With information from AFP and EFE

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