World News

Four other Colombian protesters have been killed as the number rises | Human Rights Issues

Four people were killed in Colombia on Friday when thousands of protesters wrote a month of protests throughout the country, when negotiations between the government and the local boycott committee were suspended.

In Cali, which has been the epicenter of international demonstrations, Mayor Jorge Ospina confirmed three of the dead. Local media reports say the fourth death occurred on a road between Cali and the town of Candelaria.

Protests elsewhere were peaceful, although clashes between police and protesters were reported in some places, such as Madrid, near Bogota.

“There must be a dialogue between strikers, the national government, and the general public. If there is no dialogue, violence is on the rise and unfortunately, more people could die, ”Ospina said.

Two people in Cali have been killed when a probation officer opened fire on civilians, before they could do so, Attorney General Francisco Barbosa said in a televised message. The agent was out of work at the time, Barbosa said.

Violence has been on display for the past four weeks.

Meanwhile, the government has confirmed that 17 people have died as civilians as a result of protests, while human rights groups say more people have been killed by security forces. Two police officers are also said to have been killed in the protests.

Opposition began last month after Colombian President of the Right Wing Ivan DuqueThe government introduced a tax reform that opponents say could affect the working class and middle class, which have already been devastated by the COVID-19 epidemic.

Amid singing and music during a protest rally in Bogota, protesters told Reuters they would continue marching even after a month-long protest.

Since the beginning of the month’s tax reform, the demands of the opposition have grown to include starting costs, opportunities for youth and an end to police violence.

“As long as the government hears us, we have to stay on the streets,” said Alejandro Franco, 23. As he neared the end of his studies, he told Reuters he was on his way to get an education and good health, for some reason.

“If the people are not at peace, then they are also the government,” he said.

Some say that the protests that have been going on for a long time are putting them in financial trouble.

“I have to close my shop every time there are protests,” Laudice Ramirez, 62, said to the south of the city. “I’m done, but young people don’t have any chance of ending it.”

Although protesters and leaders of the protests have reached an “agreement” to end protests this week, protesters on Thursday said the government had not signed the agreement and criticized them for their refusal.

“We have already reached an agreement, which requires the president’s signature to start negotiations,” Francisco Maltes, president of the Central Union of Workers (CUT) on Friday, blamed the government for delaying the talks.

The government has said it has not signed the agreement because some protesters will not rule out roadblocks, saying the issue is not negotiable, adding that talks will resume on Sunday.

Colombia’s finance ministry says the protests and barricades in the country cost $ 2.68bn, with the bill causing food and other shortages, raising prices, and disrupting the country’s port operations, as well as hundreds of companies.




Source link

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Back to top button