(26 Nov 2019) Students, women’s activists and indigenous people marched through the center of Colombia’s capital Monday in a fifth day of protests against the government of conservative President Ivan Duque. The demonstration was initially meant to commemorate the International Day of Nonviolence Against Women.
But it quickly morphed into an anti-government rally during which protesters vented their frustration over issues like corruption, economic inequality and violence in rural areas.
"The idea of coming out today to the streets is to show the state, show the president that what we want is to march peacefully," said student Laura Herrera.
Colombia has been rattled by protests since Thursday, when an estimated 250,000 people took to the streets amid a strike organized by unions, student groups and indigenous organizations.
The protest was the largest Colombia had seen in years, and it was followed by dozens of smaller demonstrations as well as riots that resulted in the deaths of three people and prompted authorities to impose a curfew in Bogota for the first time since 1977.
The unrest comes after mass anti-government demonstrations erupted in Ecuador, Bolivia and Chile.
Those outbursts caused leaders in Ecuador and Chile to propose changes in economic policies and forced Bolivia’s president to resign.
Some Colombian protesters say they have been inspired by the events elsewhere in the region.
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