Colombia Protests and Repression
- Miriam Specka
- May 11, 2021
- 3 min read
Protests in Colombia began on April 28 to oppose a fiscal reform introduced by President Ivan Duque, which he described as “a necessity to keep the social programs going.” Economists previously reported that the country will have to raise taxes in order to continue spending and maintain social programs such as unemployment support. Economic turmoil caused by Covid-19 has contributed to frustration with the tax reform; unemployment rates in Colombia have risen from 9% to 16% during the pandemic, and critics of the reform argue that tax raises would only escalate economic inequality. Although President Duque withdrew the proposed reform, civilian’s have continued protesting, fueled largely by anger created as a result of the government’s repression of initial unrest. Bogotá’s mayor Claudia Lopez Hernandez called on the government to acknowledge the country’s socioeconomic inequalities and that it is "not the moment" to be raising taxes on the poor and middle class and increasing the IVA on goods. Speaking with CNN on May 6, Hernandez said: "What young people want, they want inclusion. At this moment they have high levels of poverty, high levels of unemployment. This is an extreme, unequal society. And they -- they want to be heard. They want to be heard at the table with the President. Not only with political parties or other social forces, but young themselves, they want to be empowered and heard.”
The worst violence in protests was seen in the Southwest city of Cali, where the government deployed the military to, and “a team of the UN Human Rights Committee said they encountered police fire” (CNN). According to the country’s Interior Minister Daniel Palacios, protests have reached over 240 cities and towns, and on May 5 Bogota’s chief of police Maj. Gen. Oscar Antonio Gomez Heredia reported that 25 police stations had been attacked by protestors. Videos of anti-riot police using tear gas and batons to physically assault protestors have gone viral, sparking further outrage not only from Colombians at home but also from the diaspora and other communities abroad.
Human rights activists have called for an international inquiry into the deaths of protestors at the hands of police, but Interior Minister Palacios expressed opposition to this: "We in Colombia have a very independent system of counterweight and these institutions work. They are not under siege, and as a result there's already been three warrants for three police officers involved in the death of three protesters. Our system works under the rule of law." Other Latin American countries have also faced issues of police brutality and government repression of protests in recent years. If President Duque does open an inquiry into police behaviour it could serve as momentum for protest movements across the region.
As of Tuesday May 8 the number of protestors killed is reported at 26 by the country’s human rights ombudsman, but NGOs believe the number to be much higher. For instance, Human Rights Watch places the death toll at 38 and Temblores at 47. According to Colombian NGO Temblores, 1,956 cases of police violence against protestors have been registered, which include 129 cases of a protestor being shot, 313 wounded, and 12 victims of sexual assault by police. Equally unsettling is the fact that 548 have gone missing since April 28.
The Comité Nacional del Paro met with President Duque to discuss protestor’s demands,
which are elaborated on here: https://aristeguinoticias.com/0905/mundo/los-siete-puntos-que-reclaman-los-manifestantes-en-colombia/ . However, the meeting was unsuccessful, and Colombians continue taking the streets to have their voices heard.
Sources consulted
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