Colombia, submerged in protests and police abuse

2021-05-06T23:15:01.681Z

For just over a week, the repression of the police and the military in the streets has been increasing. The UN has shown its concern about these events that occurred during the protests

1As of this Tuesday, there had been 20 deaths, 87 missing and more than 800 injured since the protests started last Wednesday against a tax reform that President Iván Duque has already withdrawn.
The reverse gear has not cooled the spirits.
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2Demonstrators protest in front of the residence of the president of Colombia, Iván Duque, during the national strike against the tax reform, on May 3, in Bogotá, Colombia.
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3The protests, mostly peaceful, have sometimes led to acts of vandalism.
Protesters have burned buses and benches and looted shops.
The authorities assure that there are more than 400 wounded policemen.
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4The UN Office for Human Rights explained that those responsible, on the ground, have witnessed "excessive use of force by the police."
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5A protester is captured by the Mobile Anti-Riot Squad, during the national strike against the tax reform, on May 1, in Bogotá, Colombia.
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6At the worst moment of the pandemic in Colombia, the demonstrations have reactivated.
In the image, a group of protesters protests on May 1.
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7President Iván Duque has described these disturbances as “low intensity urban terrorism”.
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8The Defense Minister, Diego Molano, assured that the attacks against the uniformed men are actions coordinated by "dissidents" infiltrated in the protests.
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9A woman desperately screams for an end to the violence, on April 29, in the Plaza de Bolívar, in Bogotá, Colombia.
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10The president deployed the army to contain the acts of violence, but it has not been successful.
On the contrary, it has raised the tension.
The Government's response has been to redouble troops.
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11A protester during the day of protests on May 1, in Bogotá, Colombia.
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12The authorities assure that there are more than 400 injured policemen.
There are more than 500 detainees and police say they have identified dozens more assailants who are being wanted.
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13ESMAD gasses protesters during the national strike against tax reform, on May 1, in Bogotá, Colombia.
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14Brussels has also reacted to the Colombian crisis.
The spokesman for the European External Action Service, Peter Stano, said that the Union condemned the acts of violence, which aim "against the legitimate rights to demonstrate, freedom of assembly and expression".
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The tax reform was what caused the protests, but it has been the general situation of the country, hit at the moment by the economic crisis and a third wave of infections, even more aggressive than the previous ones, which has generated this great discontent.
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16 As of this Tuesday, according to the organization Temblores, which documents the abuse of authority, there had been 10 acts of sexual violence by the public force during the protests in Colombia.
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