Opposition to tax reform in Colombia has taken a dramatic turn for the past week.
The violence during the demonstrations left some 20 dead and more than 800 injured.
In an attempt to calm a mobilization that does not seem to weaken, the Minister of Finance resigned Monday.
"My stay in government would make it difficult to quickly and effectively build the necessary consensus" to carry out a new reform proposal, explained Alberto Carrasquilla, Minister since President Ivan Duque came to power in August 2018. He is replaced by economist José Manuel Restrepo, until then Minister of Commerce.
A new text under study
The Head of State announced on Sunday the withdrawal of this project to develop a new one, after five days of protests which ended in the death of 18 civilians and a police officer, according to the Defender of the People, a public entity of protection of rights. The Ministry of Defense for its part reported 846 wounded, including 306 civilians. In addition, 431 people were arrested during the unrest which, since April 28, has punctuated some demonstrations, although most have been peaceful.
Under pressure from protests, the Conservative president said on Sunday that the new text will exclude the most contested points, including a rise in VAT on goods and services, as well as a broadening of the tax base on income.
But that doesn't seem to be enough.
Several hundred demonstrators again took to the streets of Bogota, Medellin and Cali on Monday.
The National Strike Committee, at the origin of the initial mobilization, also called to demonstrate again on Wednesday, although most major cities are under travel restrictions with the Covid-19 crisis.
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