Social anger in Colombia: the government proposes a "dialogue"
Colombia, Bogota, May 6, 2021: candles for the victims of the protests.
AP - Fernando Vergara
Text by: RFI Follow
4 min
The tension does not fall in Colombia despite the call for dialogue launched Thursday by the Colombian government.
The protests left at least 26 victims, according to official figures largely underestimated according to NGOs, and hundreds of injured.
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Yesterday Thursday, on the ninth day of protest, Miguel Ceballos, presidential adviser appointed mediator, called for dialogue "between all sectors" of society.
"We must listen to all sectors of the country, but the country must also listen to the government (...) this includes those who demonstrate, but also those who do not demonstrate," said Miguel Ceballos.
Discussions began on Wednesday under his supervision, with the participation of the Ombudsman, a public body for the protection of rights, representatives of the prosecution and federations from various economic sectors.
Mr. Ceballos assured that he would meet the leaders of the demonstrations next Monday. Then, in a message on Twitter, he invited the "National Strike Committee to meet with President and Vice-President," Mara Lucia Ramirez, without giving further details. This Committee, which launched the call for mobilization, said it was ready for a direct dialogue with Ivan Duque, reports Agence France Presse.
The president of the Central Unitaria de Trabajadores union, Francisco Maltés, however replied in a video sent to the media that dialogue will only be possible "once the towns and countryside where we have massacred young people who protest peacefully are demilitarized" . In the meantime, the slogan of a national strike (paro nacional) is maintained. "
The central point is that they demilitarize the cities, that is to say that they guarantee people to be able to go out and demonstrate in peace, quite the opposite of what has happened in recent days in different regions of Colombia
”, confirmed at the microphone of Angelica Perez, of the writing in Spanish of RFI, Jennifer Pedraza one of the leaders of the student movement Acrees (Association of students of the Higher Education).
For us, the social organizations, it would be “
shooting
us
in the foot
” to negotiate “
without having the guarantee of being able to go out into the street without being shot.
"
►
To read also
: The street does not take off in Colombia
The protest movement, which began on April 28, was initially aimed at securing the withdrawal of a tax reform bill.
Withdrawal finally obtained after 17 days of national strike and demonstrations harshly repressed by the security forces.
President Duque then announced a new law, but the protest grew on the ground of a deeper protest.
The demonstrators demand in particular an improvement of the policies of health, education, security and denounce the abuses of the police force.
The violence has left at least 24 dead and some 850 injured, according to official sources.
But local NGOs announced higher figures, including Temblores with 37 dead Thursday and
more than 370 missing
.
Después of 9 días of # ParoIndefinido2021 in @TembloresOng the presentamos an updated report of the cifras de la violencia cometida por miembros de la fuerza pública.
@ONU_es pic.twitter.com/RoN9c3o136
- Temblores ONG 🐘 (@TembloresOng) May 6, 2021
The presidency of Ivan Duque is regularly the target of protest movements as in 2019 and 2020. The
social and economic crisis
following the pandemic has made the unease of the poorest categories of Colombia even more acute.
Without forgetting the political violence, the assassinations of social leaders and the resurgence of the armed conflict which has plagued the country for nearly sixty years.
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Also to listen
: Demonstrations repressed in Colombia: "We are crowding out social and economic demands"
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