Protesters are still regularly taking to the streets of cities and towns across Colombia, more than two months after thousands of demonstrators began calling for widespread economic and social change.
On June 29, people in the capital Bogota again joined demonstrations against the government led by President Ivan Duque, a day after similar action in the northern city of Medellin.
The wave of protests began on April 28 in response to government proposals to raise taxes. While the plans were dropped days later, activists have continued to urge the government to tackle growing poverty and inequality and provide better public services. Protesters are also demanding major reforms to the police.
The national strike committee representing unions, human rights groups and Indigenous movements is for now pausing weekly demonstrations, while it writes reform proposals that it plans to submit to the next session of Congress on July 20. But a committee leader has warned of a second national strike and even bigger protests later this year if government and lawmakers do not consider their ideas.
In this episode of The Stream we’ll look at the protests in Colombia and how the government is responding, and ask how activists can get positive change.
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