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2019, the year Latin America exploded

2020-01-01T11:14:54.456Z


From Chile to Puerto Rico, from Bolivia to Colombia, the protests created a domino effect: multitudes of people of different nationalities, religions and political affiliations took to the streets to demand a change in the face of corruption and inequality.


In 2019, protests around the world, but especially in Latin America, marked a before and after in the nations that expressed their dissatisfaction. Both peaceful and violent, these demonstrations were caused by economic instability, government corruption and inequality.

From Chile to Puerto Rico, from Bolivia to Colombia, the protests created a domino effect, crossing borders and bringing multitudes of people of different nationalities, religions and political affiliations to the streets to demand change. This is also demonstrated by the mass protests in Hong Kong, Iran, Iraq and Lebanon, on the other side of the world.

In South America, the protests of 'cacerolazo' , hitting pots and pans, echoed in several countries. In Puerto Rico and Bolivia, they led to the resignation of their leaders. In the case of Chile and Colombia, mass mobilizations mark a new era to reimagine more robust democracies - in one case, after a dictatorship, and in the other after a five-decade civil war.

Puerto Rico and Rosselló's 'chatgate'

Video: The Puerto Rican people demand the resignation of Ricardo Rosselló, governor of Puerto Rico

The scandal over the private conversations of Governor Ricardo Rosselló in a chat unleashed in July this year in Puerto Rico which became an example of effective protest.

In the 899 leaked pages of the conversation between nine senior officials of the Rosselló administration, there were insults and vulgarities against political opponents, macho and homophobic comments and mockery of the island's problems.

Roselló calls the New York congresswoman of Puerto Rican descent Melissa Mark-Viverito “whore”; The mayor of San Juan, Carmen Yulín , says "daughter of a bitch" and mocks an overweight man with whom a photo was taken. Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin insults him for being gay, and attacks the federal board that monitors the island's finances.

Thousands of indignant Puerto Ricans threw themselves into the streets to demand Rosselló's departure. Leaders and Puerto Ricans joined in and out the island, as reggaetoneros with millions of followers such as Bad Bunny and Resident .

After 12 intense days of protests, the governor surrendered and announced his resignation.

Chile and the rise in the price of the subway that ignited a nation

Crowd protest in Santiago, Chile, last October. Photo by Getty Images

This Southern Cone country, known for maintaining one of the supposedly more stable democracies in the region, was at the forefront of protests in the region this year.

The demonstrations, driven by students, emerged from a 30-meter ($ 0.04) subway rate hike in October, but quickly became manifestations of a deep and widespread discontent over inequality and against Sebastián Piñera's right-wing government .

"We are united in our outrage over abuses caused by the government and the business sector," activist Mathias Lueg told NBC News from the streets of Santiago.

Some minorities set several subway stations on fire and looted supermarkets and churches. The authorities retaliated. There were violent clashes between the security forces (the Carabineros, as they are known in Chile) and the protesters who left at least 20 dead.

The National Institute of Human Rights (NHRI) of Chile published in its annual report that 3,557 people were injured from October 17 that began protests until November 30, 359 of them in the eyes and 23 lost that organ, according to the NHRI.

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In a recent report, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said that the police and armed forces “breached international norms and standards on assembly control and the use of force during the recent mass protests and state of emergency, ”according to the United Nations.

For this reason, the government canceled two major international summits, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit and the United Nations climate summit.

Piñera now has 81% disapproval , the highest discontent with a president since that country entered democracy after Augusto Pinochet's long military dictatorship.

Chile still operates under a constitution written at the end of this dictatorship and one of the great achievements of the protests was to get a referendum to decide whether this Constitution is referenced, a process that will begin with a national vote in April 2020.

Bolivia and the departure of Evo Morales

Video: Evo Morales demands guarantees to return to Bolivia (full interview)

The historic turmoil in Bolivia that led former President Evo Morales to resign and flee to Mexico ignited a severe political conflict in the nation.

Claims of electoral fraud after his victory in October took the Bolivians to the streets, becoming clashes between rival protesters and the public forces.

In an interview with Noticias Telemundo, Morales spoke of the accusations against him, the reasons for his resignation and the plans to return to Bolivia, a country he ruled for 14 years until he had to leave unexpectedly on November 12.

According to figures from the Ombudsman of Bolivia, since the vote on October 20, 33 people have died, and another 804 have been injured in the various demonstrations and clashes that have been unleashed throughout the country.

Since Morales's resignation, more protests have been triggered calling for his return. And although the opposition celebrated his departure and right-wing deputy Jeanine Yañez declared herself president, Morales still has strong support at home who fears a power vacuum.

Colombia and the National Unemployment

The Bogotá riot squad detains a protester during the national strike on November 21, 2019. Photo by Getty Images

Tens of thousands of Colombians marched in hundreds of cities throughout the South American country and in the rest of the world to express deep disagreement with the government of Iván Duque.

This has been the strongest rejection of his management, his conservative party, the Democratic Center, and the legacy of former President Alvaro Úribe Vélez .

The protests in Colombia were convened by trade union organizations and student activists initially for November 21, but continue after more than a month.

At that time, at least 4 people have died, including 18-year-old Dilan Cruz, who was shot in the head of an ESMAD agent, the country's riot police, and became the symbol of discontent in the country.

After nine days of demonstrations in the country, authorities reported that more than 700 people, including civilians and police, had been injured.

According to the National Police, of the 769 injured, 379 are members of the Public Force and 390 citizens.

Police said they opened 20 disciplinary proceedings for alleged cases of abuse of authority and irregularities in procedures. The Military Criminal Justice also opened 14 investigations.

In Colombia, the armed conflict between the guerrillas, the paramilitaries and the Government, the most lasting in the hemisphere with more than 50 years, had limited how citizens expressed themselves publicly and democratically.

The Peace Agreement signed by the Government with the guerrillas of the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) in 2016 opened the door to stop being the conflict what agreed the terms of democracy and Colombians could make other demands urgent: a less stratified society, less corruption, better education, greater security for social leaders, increase in the minimum wage, less benefits for the wealthiest, among other demands.

The discontent, which covered all the ideologies and strata of the population, has Duque on the ropes , who obtained a 70% disapproval rate in the latest Gallup polls.

Duque has met with representatives of the call for unemployment (teachers unions, health workers, workers) but his government has not made progress that meets the demands of those who protested throughout Colombia.

“The rapist is you”: the viral protest of some Chileans becomes a global feminist anthem

Video: Cleaning workers join the cry of 'A rapist on your way' against gender violence

The artistic performance 'A rapist in your path', created by the female collective 'LasTesis', was born in Chile. It quickly spread first through Latin America — by its letter in Spanish and driven by protests that convulsed the region — and then by the rest of the world.

The song and choreography was replicated in at least 30 countries such as Bolivia, Argentina, Colombia, USA, France, Spain, Germany, India, Turkey, Australia, and many more. Its objective is to reject the particular violence suffered by women, impunity for those who exercise it and the lack of protection from the authorities.

In the performance that was replicated in Miami, they carried the rhythm of the song by hitting a saucepan, the symbol of discontent and protest in Latin America.

Some of the countries where this message has hit the strongest is where, in addition to having high rates of feminicides and sexual violence against women, these social, historical movements in their impact and duration have also emerged .

That is the case of course in Chile, where the social outbreak of October 18 influenced and inspired numerous protests. Various groups, such as LasTesis, wielded their fight flags, and they continue to do so since then.

"I think that the demonstrations in Latin America have generated the space for people to find and channel the energy needed to find these instances of demonstration," he told Noticias Telemundo Milena Gutierrez, a Colombian who, together with other Latin women, organized the event in Miami .

Gutierrez also calls attention to other types of violence against women she has suffered, such as economic violence: the fact that, for the same job, women earn up to 54 cents for every dollar a man earns, in the case of Latinas in the US

"The immediacy of the information today, the effect of viralization, allows people to immediately join the causes, seeing that young people are manifesting, raising their voices and participating," said Gutierrez. “We are finding other ways to say, 'We are present, we are not satisfied.' That is thanks to the Latin American movements, without a doubt. ”

Read also:

Chile agrees a historic plebiscite to decide whether to replace the Constitution inherited from the dictatorship

Three dead after massive national strike in Colombia that puts President Duque in check

Interactive map: the journey of 'A rapist on your way' around the world

Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2020-01-01

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