Colombian unions, student groups and other protesters marched on Thursday against rumored economic reform plans and amid rising discontent with the government of President Ivan Duque, while the city of Cali imposed a curfew from 7 p.m.
POLICE FORCES USE TEAR GAS, RUBBER BULLETS ON PROTESTERS
Hundreds of thousands took to the streets to demand the government maintain the minimum wage for young people and the universal right to a pension, even though Duque has repeatedly denied considering those changes.
Other groups of marchers protested what they say is a lack of government action to prevent the murder of hundreds of human rights activists, corruption at universities and other issues.
Duque has repeatedly said his government would not tolerate violence and police fired tear gas in several cities, including in Bogota’s storied Bolivar Plaza.
As of 7 p.m. (2400 GMT), 42 civilians and 37 police officers had been injured, the police and interior ministry said, while 36 people had been arrested. Some 207,000 people marched, they said, most heading home peacefully in the late afternoon.
“There has been a very positive citizen participation in practically the whole country,” Interior Minister Nancy Patricia Gutierrez told journalists. “There have been a series of isolated incidents that have been controlled appropriately and adequately by the national police.”