Re: Colombia
Posted: Tue May 04, 2021 1:40 pm
COLLAPSE IN COLOMBIA AMID PANDEMIC, TAX REFORM AND PROTESTS
May 3 , 2021 , 9:48 am .
Confrontation has been the common factor in Colombia, where six tax reforms have been attempted in 10 years, all focused on the dispossession of the working classes (Photo: Sergio Ángel)
Even though the slogan "More wages, less taxes" prevailed in his electoral campaign, Colombian President Iván Duque is going through the same crisis today as a result of his proposals for economic reforms that have used the global pandemic due to covid-19 as an excuse.
This is the third tax reform in three years, and the sixth in ten years, called the "Sustainable Solidarity Law Project" that aims to raise 23 trillion pesos (approximately 6.3 billion dollars) between 2022 and 2031.
Its Minister of Finance has declared that it is necessary due to the fiscal deficit that the Andean country is going through. This indicator will be in the order of 8.6% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), an increase with respect to the 7.8% that is estimated to have been generated in 2020. The government argues that it needs to raise taxes on the middle and upper class of the country to finance subsidies to companies and the most vulnerable population that was especially affected by the pandemic.
DUQUE PROMISED "LESS TAXES" BUT IT WAS NOT WITH EVERYONE
The electoral plan presented by the Uribista president was to increase the income of workers who found employment while reducing the tax burden on companies, even though the people could have understood otherwise. His economic team repeated what many technicians of the neoliberal doctrine: if companies pay less taxes, they could generate more jobs and raise salaries.
The electoral propaganda of the current Colombian president, Iván Duque, offered less taxes but did not refer to the entire population (Photo: Wild evil)
The tax and labor reforms were added to the assassinations of social leaders, the breaches of the peace agreements and the absence of frank dialogue, this caused protests by labor unions, teachers, university students, peasants, indigenous communities and different social groups between November of that year and February 2020. The repression unleashed by the Duque administration left at least 17 dead and more than 700 injured among police officers and protesters.
This led to the dismissal of Defense Minister Guillermo Botero, who declared about the need to regulate social protest and blamed illegal armed groups. This proposal was supported by Vice President Marta Lucía Ramírez , making an urgent call for the regulation of the proposal, accusing the Venezuelan government of infiltrating protesters.
In December of that year, a tax reform was approved that included exemptions for national companies "to promote job creation and competitiveness." This was established by reducing the income tax for companies of all kinds, from 33% to 30%, which has been applied progressively, one point per year, until 2022.
It also included social benefits for natural persons that consisted of the refund of VAT to citizens with the lowest income, the implementation of three days without VAT distributed throughout the year, the reduction of health contributions for pensioners who receive one and two minimum wages and a stimulus to companies that hire young employees.
THE EXCUSE OF THE PANDEMIC IN THE FACE OF PERMANENT AND STRUCTURAL CRISIS
The management of the global pandemic caused by the covid-19 disease has been part of the crisis that today confronts the Colombian government with different sectors. Erratic decisions such as lack of coordination between the executive branch and local authorities were compounded by failures in economic decrees such as:
Reduction of pension contribution payments to generate relief for companies and transfer more than 25 thousand members of private funds to Colpensiones (declared unenforceable by the Constitutional Court).
Authorization for mayors to increase subsidies in aqueduct, sewerage and cleaning services, by 80% for stratum 1, 50% for stratum 2 and 40% for 3 (two ministers did not sign the approval of the rule).
Solidarity Tax of 20% on the salaries of public officials (not private) who earn more than 10 million pesos per month (declared unenforceable by the Constitutional Court).
The Colombian economy is an economy that has been dismantling the State through the delivery to the private sector of different and strategic productive areas such as energy mining, communications and financial services. The last Colombian governments have expanded serial reforms with exemptions and deductions for large capital that has accumulated profits in a vertiginous way, more since the Uribe Vélez governments.
The Duque administration's handling of the pandemic accelerated the structural causes that generate war and misery in Colombia (Photo: Caracol Radio)
Control over the flow of capital, the repatriation of profits and the evasion of large firms and Colombian magnates with accounts in tax havens and other assets abroad is ineffective or non-existent. The unproductive latifundia and the profit from the non-cadastral updating are maintained, which causes the landowners to pay taxes below the law. The public debt of the State is close to 60% of GDP, much more than during the great financial crisis of 1999.
For this structural crisis, they want to blame COVID-19 and its regressive effects on the global economy. Only in labor policy has Colombia's historical performance maintained an immutable course towards precariousness. Since the 1990s, Congress began to pass laws to relax and deregulate labor relations, and social security went into decline.
This process corresponds to the enactment of Law 50 of 1990, Law 100 of 1993 and Law 789 of 2002, which generated loss of identity with the world of work, high staff turnover, decrease in real salary, and quality life of the middle layers, highly qualified.
In the midst of a pandemic, according to the former presidential candidate Gustavo Petro, "a budget fund was created to subsidize the labor payroll of companies that totaled three and a half billion pesos. It was about giving the businessman 40% of the value of his work payroll. While there are 1,800,000 small entrepreneurs in the country, they only helped 100,000 with this fund. Most of the money, more than 50%, went to only 1,000 companies, the largest in the country, the richest and most those that produce the least employment ".
Duque's management of the pandemic focused on leaving small businessmen and the middle classes to their fate to reinforce the privileged sectors. In their environment of analysts, they have tried to include, without solid data, the impact of the massive arrival of Venezuelans to the country as an aggravation of the situation, however several studies indicate that, in the long term, migration can be beneficial, as it optimizes the "demographic bonus", as they are mainly young people.
However, for this to become a reality, it is necessary to improve the way of inserting this population into the labor market, as this demographic growth has remained informal.
AVIANCA: LIFEGUARDS AT WILL AND A SKY OF DOUBTS
An example of how the pandemic is being implemented to favor large capitals was the lifeline that the government launched to Avianca Holding, a company that on May 10, 2020, presented an application to a US bankruptcy court to apply to Chapter 11 of the Code of Bankruptcy of that country.
Avianca Holding is made up of more than 30 Latin American companies, including the Avianca airline, founded in Colombia, but which long ago ceased to be a national company. It generates more than 21,000 direct and indirect jobs in Latin America, of which more than 14,000 are in Colombia, and works with a network of more than 3,000 suppliers.
After the approval for the financing of 370 million dollars by the recently created Emergency Mitigation Fund (FOME), administered by the Ministry of Finance under Alberto Carrasquilla, Duque explained that the decision was made to preserve the air service national in the face of the emergency caused by the covid-19 pandemic, and that this company has the largest operation in the country with a 45.5% share in the transported passenger market in 2019.
Avianca, a foreign airline that owns most of its staff in Colombian territory, was rescued by a loan from the Duque government, whose sister was a senior executive of the company (Photo: File)
The presidents of smaller airlines, such as Viva Air or Easy Fly, said they agreed with the government loan to Avianca but considered it necessary that this help also be given to the rest of the air market players in Colombia.
"While this lifeline with Colombian resources is being thrown at (Avianca), the government has denied the basic emergency income, it has denied zero tuition for all young students of public universities," said Senator Antonio Sanguino, of the Alianza Verde party, during a virtual session of Congress.
In addition to the fact that the company has been on the verge of bankruptcy on more than one occasion and already owes several billion dollars to creditors to whom it has not been able to pay, it is curious that a foreign company is privileged to the detriment of other public or 100% Colombian capitals that produce more jobs.
Especially when his sister and former communications vice minister of Álvaro Uribe's government, María Paula Duque , was the company's senior vice president of Strategic Relations and Customer Experience, a senior executive position.
By allocating an important part of the FOME to this sector, the government reduces the amount allocated to social assistance and millions of citizens have not been able to stay at home, which in turn has prevented the mitigation of contagions and deepened economic instability.
IMMOLATING DUQUE? URIBE AND THE DEMOCRATIC CENTER PLAYING IN HIS FAVOR
In the middle of the second wave of the pandemic at the end of last March and the beginning of April, the government team leaked working papers with preliminary proposals that would seek to increase the taxable base of VAT, that is, without raising rates, a greater number of products would be taxed. This would bring higher tax returns to the most vulnerable households as compensation for these increases.
In such a way that products that do not pay sales tax or that have a 5% rate, would have a 19% surcharge. Another measure was to increase the volume of Colombians who pay income tax, going from imposing the tribute to those who earn 4.9 million pesos a month, to those who earn between 3.5 and 4 million, increasing taxpayers by one million.
In the boiling of rumors and debates in the media, several members of the ruling Democratic Center party criticized the proposals in vogue, including Uribe, who announced his vision of seeking a "social and moderate tax reform agreed with majorities." He also stated that the proposals to increase taxes are unpopular and should be replaced by spending cuts, for which the Congress must be reduced and the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) must be reformed.
For the former president and former senator it is still appropriate that the body in charge of prosecuting and investigating all members of the defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), public forces and third parties, be eliminated or denatured due to the large number of of open trials and complaints for crimes against humanity that exist against their government efforts.
The rest of the government party accompanies him because no congressman would like to be associated with an increase in the taxes of all Colombians one year before the general elections, which would be in 2022, that includes the members of the government bench.
Even though during his eight years of government and the successive years of Santos and Duque, widely linked to their political ideology, large capitals have been favored, Uribe spoke that the family basket should not be taxed but "that the wealthiest pay." .
The government's need is such that it intends, with the latest reform proposal, to raise almost 30 trillion pesos, which is equivalent to three tax reforms the size of the last one it made in 2019.
In addition, the middle class was greatly affected by that reform by limiting discounts and raising rental rates for individuals. This trend continued in the project presented by the government as it would have further limited deductions, which raises the tax base, and would imply an increase in taxes. This added to the eventual pension tax proposal, which would have further affected consumption amid weak demand and, of course, would affect economic growth.
THE REFORM ENTERS AND THE PROTESTS IGNITE
On April 28, a 24-hour general strike was called by the unions, who would consider extending it for two or three days, as other sectors claimed. The final proposal of the "Sustainable Solidarity Law" entered Congress proposing an increase in VAT to 19% for public energy, sewage and gas services while reducing the minimum amount from which citizens must pay taxes, which would expand the register of taxpayers.
Three million workers should file an income tax return from which they are currently exempt due to their income and half of them would have to pay taxes, those who earned $ 663 would be required to file income taxes in 2022, but the following year the The tax standard would grow because the rule would apply to everyone who received $ 470.
The reform also established a wealth tax that would allow those with an equity of 1.3 million dollars to pay 1.0% of taxes in an extraordinary way in 2022 and 2023 and that those who receive four million dollars or more, pay 2.0%. It also envisaged that those who earned around $ 2,700 a month would cover a one-time extra tax, in addition to the income tax they already cover.
Government critics such as former senator Piedad Córdoba accused him of hitting consumption, affecting production and keeping large companies untouchable with VAT on public services for strata 4,5 and 6 without taking into account the growing unemployment and bankruptcy in the middle classes. He also criticized a VAT on the Internet service from stratum 3 just when the virtualization of work and education have made it an essential item of all households, also the VAT on funeral services in the midst of a pandemic and with figures of 400 deaths a day .
Criticisms continued against the VAT on gasoline with the consequent transfer of costs to public transport and goods; the authorization to municipalities to install urban tolls within the cities and the payment of tolls for motorcycles and more measures "where citizens enter to pay what has not been spent and is not going to be spent."
Peaceful social mobilization is not made visible like isolated violent events, which serves the press to demonize the protests and the security forces to repress (Photo: Archive)
Between peaceful marches, riots, road closures and clashes with the Police, the protests have lasted up to four days and were massive in Bogotá, Cali, Medellín, Barranquilla and Cartagena. Multiple cases and reports of police abuse were reported and there were reports of victims whose numbers vary.
The National Ombudsman, Carlos Camargo, affirmed that the four days of protests in the city of Cali resulted in 10 deaths, while Defense Minister Diego Molano reported that four homicides were being investigated. Local human rights groups, for their part, even point out that the fatalities during the protests amount to 14 .
Uribe, for his part, called for the use of lethal force against the protesters through his twitter account, this generated a massive protest on the virtual platform demanding that the former president's account be blocked on that network.
The company deleted its tweet alluding that the ex-president violated the policy of "glorification of violence" while he justified himself by declaring his intention to "prevent vandalism in the main cities of the country, which generate terrorism and fear among citizens."
Duque affirmed that the necessary measures of "military assistance" would be taken to "guarantee supplies, mobility, the right to work and security in the national territory," noting that the Army and the Police are ready to continue acting. "We are not going to allow de facto means, the destruction of property or the message of hate to have a place," he said.
But everything has its end. On Sunday, May 2, Duque announced that he would withdraw the reform to formulate a new text that would seek to "build a new initiative based on consensus, which allows us to find the necessary resources to pay the expenses of the pandemic and guarantee the social aid that require ". The pressure obtained a momentary payoff, with noticeable casualties as usual in the social and armed conflict that Colombia has been experiencing for more than half a century.
A smoke remains in the air that does not dissipate: the questions about a country in which violence does not disappear and whose military spending is the highest in the region, which exports its internal war and even uses it to exacerbate regime change In Venezuela.
Once again, the intention to make those who did not cause it pay and those who never benefited from the policies that generated this chronicle of a serious economic crisis, were defeated. The story goes on.
https://misionverdad.com/globalistan/co ... -protestas
Google Translator
May 3 , 2021 , 9:48 am .
Confrontation has been the common factor in Colombia, where six tax reforms have been attempted in 10 years, all focused on the dispossession of the working classes (Photo: Sergio Ángel)
Even though the slogan "More wages, less taxes" prevailed in his electoral campaign, Colombian President Iván Duque is going through the same crisis today as a result of his proposals for economic reforms that have used the global pandemic due to covid-19 as an excuse.
This is the third tax reform in three years, and the sixth in ten years, called the "Sustainable Solidarity Law Project" that aims to raise 23 trillion pesos (approximately 6.3 billion dollars) between 2022 and 2031.
Its Minister of Finance has declared that it is necessary due to the fiscal deficit that the Andean country is going through. This indicator will be in the order of 8.6% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), an increase with respect to the 7.8% that is estimated to have been generated in 2020. The government argues that it needs to raise taxes on the middle and upper class of the country to finance subsidies to companies and the most vulnerable population that was especially affected by the pandemic.
DUQUE PROMISED "LESS TAXES" BUT IT WAS NOT WITH EVERYONE
The electoral plan presented by the Uribista president was to increase the income of workers who found employment while reducing the tax burden on companies, even though the people could have understood otherwise. His economic team repeated what many technicians of the neoliberal doctrine: if companies pay less taxes, they could generate more jobs and raise salaries.
The electoral propaganda of the current Colombian president, Iván Duque, offered less taxes but did not refer to the entire population (Photo: Wild evil)
The tax and labor reforms were added to the assassinations of social leaders, the breaches of the peace agreements and the absence of frank dialogue, this caused protests by labor unions, teachers, university students, peasants, indigenous communities and different social groups between November of that year and February 2020. The repression unleashed by the Duque administration left at least 17 dead and more than 700 injured among police officers and protesters.
This led to the dismissal of Defense Minister Guillermo Botero, who declared about the need to regulate social protest and blamed illegal armed groups. This proposal was supported by Vice President Marta Lucía Ramírez , making an urgent call for the regulation of the proposal, accusing the Venezuelan government of infiltrating protesters.
In December of that year, a tax reform was approved that included exemptions for national companies "to promote job creation and competitiveness." This was established by reducing the income tax for companies of all kinds, from 33% to 30%, which has been applied progressively, one point per year, until 2022.
It also included social benefits for natural persons that consisted of the refund of VAT to citizens with the lowest income, the implementation of three days without VAT distributed throughout the year, the reduction of health contributions for pensioners who receive one and two minimum wages and a stimulus to companies that hire young employees.
THE EXCUSE OF THE PANDEMIC IN THE FACE OF PERMANENT AND STRUCTURAL CRISIS
The management of the global pandemic caused by the covid-19 disease has been part of the crisis that today confronts the Colombian government with different sectors. Erratic decisions such as lack of coordination between the executive branch and local authorities were compounded by failures in economic decrees such as:
Reduction of pension contribution payments to generate relief for companies and transfer more than 25 thousand members of private funds to Colpensiones (declared unenforceable by the Constitutional Court).
Authorization for mayors to increase subsidies in aqueduct, sewerage and cleaning services, by 80% for stratum 1, 50% for stratum 2 and 40% for 3 (two ministers did not sign the approval of the rule).
Solidarity Tax of 20% on the salaries of public officials (not private) who earn more than 10 million pesos per month (declared unenforceable by the Constitutional Court).
The Colombian economy is an economy that has been dismantling the State through the delivery to the private sector of different and strategic productive areas such as energy mining, communications and financial services. The last Colombian governments have expanded serial reforms with exemptions and deductions for large capital that has accumulated profits in a vertiginous way, more since the Uribe Vélez governments.
The Duque administration's handling of the pandemic accelerated the structural causes that generate war and misery in Colombia (Photo: Caracol Radio)
Control over the flow of capital, the repatriation of profits and the evasion of large firms and Colombian magnates with accounts in tax havens and other assets abroad is ineffective or non-existent. The unproductive latifundia and the profit from the non-cadastral updating are maintained, which causes the landowners to pay taxes below the law. The public debt of the State is close to 60% of GDP, much more than during the great financial crisis of 1999.
For this structural crisis, they want to blame COVID-19 and its regressive effects on the global economy. Only in labor policy has Colombia's historical performance maintained an immutable course towards precariousness. Since the 1990s, Congress began to pass laws to relax and deregulate labor relations, and social security went into decline.
This process corresponds to the enactment of Law 50 of 1990, Law 100 of 1993 and Law 789 of 2002, which generated loss of identity with the world of work, high staff turnover, decrease in real salary, and quality life of the middle layers, highly qualified.
In the midst of a pandemic, according to the former presidential candidate Gustavo Petro, "a budget fund was created to subsidize the labor payroll of companies that totaled three and a half billion pesos. It was about giving the businessman 40% of the value of his work payroll. While there are 1,800,000 small entrepreneurs in the country, they only helped 100,000 with this fund. Most of the money, more than 50%, went to only 1,000 companies, the largest in the country, the richest and most those that produce the least employment ".
Duque's management of the pandemic focused on leaving small businessmen and the middle classes to their fate to reinforce the privileged sectors. In their environment of analysts, they have tried to include, without solid data, the impact of the massive arrival of Venezuelans to the country as an aggravation of the situation, however several studies indicate that, in the long term, migration can be beneficial, as it optimizes the "demographic bonus", as they are mainly young people.
However, for this to become a reality, it is necessary to improve the way of inserting this population into the labor market, as this demographic growth has remained informal.
AVIANCA: LIFEGUARDS AT WILL AND A SKY OF DOUBTS
An example of how the pandemic is being implemented to favor large capitals was the lifeline that the government launched to Avianca Holding, a company that on May 10, 2020, presented an application to a US bankruptcy court to apply to Chapter 11 of the Code of Bankruptcy of that country.
Avianca Holding is made up of more than 30 Latin American companies, including the Avianca airline, founded in Colombia, but which long ago ceased to be a national company. It generates more than 21,000 direct and indirect jobs in Latin America, of which more than 14,000 are in Colombia, and works with a network of more than 3,000 suppliers.
After the approval for the financing of 370 million dollars by the recently created Emergency Mitigation Fund (FOME), administered by the Ministry of Finance under Alberto Carrasquilla, Duque explained that the decision was made to preserve the air service national in the face of the emergency caused by the covid-19 pandemic, and that this company has the largest operation in the country with a 45.5% share in the transported passenger market in 2019.
Avianca, a foreign airline that owns most of its staff in Colombian territory, was rescued by a loan from the Duque government, whose sister was a senior executive of the company (Photo: File)
The presidents of smaller airlines, such as Viva Air or Easy Fly, said they agreed with the government loan to Avianca but considered it necessary that this help also be given to the rest of the air market players in Colombia.
"While this lifeline with Colombian resources is being thrown at (Avianca), the government has denied the basic emergency income, it has denied zero tuition for all young students of public universities," said Senator Antonio Sanguino, of the Alianza Verde party, during a virtual session of Congress.
In addition to the fact that the company has been on the verge of bankruptcy on more than one occasion and already owes several billion dollars to creditors to whom it has not been able to pay, it is curious that a foreign company is privileged to the detriment of other public or 100% Colombian capitals that produce more jobs.
Especially when his sister and former communications vice minister of Álvaro Uribe's government, María Paula Duque , was the company's senior vice president of Strategic Relations and Customer Experience, a senior executive position.
By allocating an important part of the FOME to this sector, the government reduces the amount allocated to social assistance and millions of citizens have not been able to stay at home, which in turn has prevented the mitigation of contagions and deepened economic instability.
IMMOLATING DUQUE? URIBE AND THE DEMOCRATIC CENTER PLAYING IN HIS FAVOR
In the middle of the second wave of the pandemic at the end of last March and the beginning of April, the government team leaked working papers with preliminary proposals that would seek to increase the taxable base of VAT, that is, without raising rates, a greater number of products would be taxed. This would bring higher tax returns to the most vulnerable households as compensation for these increases.
In such a way that products that do not pay sales tax or that have a 5% rate, would have a 19% surcharge. Another measure was to increase the volume of Colombians who pay income tax, going from imposing the tribute to those who earn 4.9 million pesos a month, to those who earn between 3.5 and 4 million, increasing taxpayers by one million.
In the boiling of rumors and debates in the media, several members of the ruling Democratic Center party criticized the proposals in vogue, including Uribe, who announced his vision of seeking a "social and moderate tax reform agreed with majorities." He also stated that the proposals to increase taxes are unpopular and should be replaced by spending cuts, for which the Congress must be reduced and the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) must be reformed.
For the former president and former senator it is still appropriate that the body in charge of prosecuting and investigating all members of the defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), public forces and third parties, be eliminated or denatured due to the large number of of open trials and complaints for crimes against humanity that exist against their government efforts.
The rest of the government party accompanies him because no congressman would like to be associated with an increase in the taxes of all Colombians one year before the general elections, which would be in 2022, that includes the members of the government bench.
Even though during his eight years of government and the successive years of Santos and Duque, widely linked to their political ideology, large capitals have been favored, Uribe spoke that the family basket should not be taxed but "that the wealthiest pay." .
The government's need is such that it intends, with the latest reform proposal, to raise almost 30 trillion pesos, which is equivalent to three tax reforms the size of the last one it made in 2019.
In addition, the middle class was greatly affected by that reform by limiting discounts and raising rental rates for individuals. This trend continued in the project presented by the government as it would have further limited deductions, which raises the tax base, and would imply an increase in taxes. This added to the eventual pension tax proposal, which would have further affected consumption amid weak demand and, of course, would affect economic growth.
THE REFORM ENTERS AND THE PROTESTS IGNITE
On April 28, a 24-hour general strike was called by the unions, who would consider extending it for two or three days, as other sectors claimed. The final proposal of the "Sustainable Solidarity Law" entered Congress proposing an increase in VAT to 19% for public energy, sewage and gas services while reducing the minimum amount from which citizens must pay taxes, which would expand the register of taxpayers.
Three million workers should file an income tax return from which they are currently exempt due to their income and half of them would have to pay taxes, those who earned $ 663 would be required to file income taxes in 2022, but the following year the The tax standard would grow because the rule would apply to everyone who received $ 470.
The reform also established a wealth tax that would allow those with an equity of 1.3 million dollars to pay 1.0% of taxes in an extraordinary way in 2022 and 2023 and that those who receive four million dollars or more, pay 2.0%. It also envisaged that those who earned around $ 2,700 a month would cover a one-time extra tax, in addition to the income tax they already cover.
Government critics such as former senator Piedad Córdoba accused him of hitting consumption, affecting production and keeping large companies untouchable with VAT on public services for strata 4,5 and 6 without taking into account the growing unemployment and bankruptcy in the middle classes. He also criticized a VAT on the Internet service from stratum 3 just when the virtualization of work and education have made it an essential item of all households, also the VAT on funeral services in the midst of a pandemic and with figures of 400 deaths a day .
Criticisms continued against the VAT on gasoline with the consequent transfer of costs to public transport and goods; the authorization to municipalities to install urban tolls within the cities and the payment of tolls for motorcycles and more measures "where citizens enter to pay what has not been spent and is not going to be spent."
Peaceful social mobilization is not made visible like isolated violent events, which serves the press to demonize the protests and the security forces to repress (Photo: Archive)
Between peaceful marches, riots, road closures and clashes with the Police, the protests have lasted up to four days and were massive in Bogotá, Cali, Medellín, Barranquilla and Cartagena. Multiple cases and reports of police abuse were reported and there were reports of victims whose numbers vary.
The National Ombudsman, Carlos Camargo, affirmed that the four days of protests in the city of Cali resulted in 10 deaths, while Defense Minister Diego Molano reported that four homicides were being investigated. Local human rights groups, for their part, even point out that the fatalities during the protests amount to 14 .
Uribe, for his part, called for the use of lethal force against the protesters through his twitter account, this generated a massive protest on the virtual platform demanding that the former president's account be blocked on that network.
The company deleted its tweet alluding that the ex-president violated the policy of "glorification of violence" while he justified himself by declaring his intention to "prevent vandalism in the main cities of the country, which generate terrorism and fear among citizens."
Duque affirmed that the necessary measures of "military assistance" would be taken to "guarantee supplies, mobility, the right to work and security in the national territory," noting that the Army and the Police are ready to continue acting. "We are not going to allow de facto means, the destruction of property or the message of hate to have a place," he said.
But everything has its end. On Sunday, May 2, Duque announced that he would withdraw the reform to formulate a new text that would seek to "build a new initiative based on consensus, which allows us to find the necessary resources to pay the expenses of the pandemic and guarantee the social aid that require ". The pressure obtained a momentary payoff, with noticeable casualties as usual in the social and armed conflict that Colombia has been experiencing for more than half a century.
A smoke remains in the air that does not dissipate: the questions about a country in which violence does not disappear and whose military spending is the highest in the region, which exports its internal war and even uses it to exacerbate regime change In Venezuela.
Once again, the intention to make those who did not cause it pay and those who never benefited from the policies that generated this chronicle of a serious economic crisis, were defeated. The story goes on.
https://misionverdad.com/globalistan/co ... -protestas
Google Translator