Colombian Minister resigns but fails to quell protests in which 19 people have already been killed

The resignation of the Minister of Finance of Colombia, Alberto Carrasquilla, has marked this Monday the sixth day of protests against the Government’s already withdrawn tax reform, in which, according to the Ombudsman’s Office, at least 19 people and about 800 people have died they have been injured.

Carrasquilla, who had been in office since August 7, 2018 when President Iván Duque’s term began, became the villain of the current crisis due to the harshness of the failed tax reform project, which was the spark that lit the fire of the demonstrations last week. 

This initiative hit the middle class and the lower class in particular by expanding the tax base and charging 19% VAT on public services.

To replace him, Duque appointed as the new head of the Treasury the until now Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, José Manuel Restrepo, an economist and academic who has also accompanied the president since the beginning of his government.

The social mobilizations that began in November 2019 in protest against Duque’s economic policy resurfaced with force last week after a hiatus of more than a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic that impoverished thousands of Colombian families, and the trigger was the controversial tax reform bill.

According to the Ombudsman’s report, 19 people have died during the demonstrations, 18 civilians and one policeman, and it is currently evaluating and classifying 140 complaints that include information on the deceased, disappeared, police abuse and the injured.

However, social organizations have released reports according to which the number of victims is even higher than that of the Defensoría.

The NGO Temblores, which documents police violence, has reported that from April 28 to date it has counted “26 victims of homicidal violence by the Police.”

It also reports “142 victims of physical violence,” 761 arbitrary detentions, 17 victims of “aggression in their eyes,” nine victims of sexual violence, and “56 complaints of disappearances in the context of the mobilization.”

Since the demonstrations began, the most difficult situation has been in Cali, capital of the Valle del Cauca department and the main city in southwestern Colombia, where there is uncertainty due to police violence, riots and blockades, which are causing shortages of food and fuel.

One of the most difficult moments of the day was lived in a sector known as La Luna, in the south of the city, where the protesters staged a pitched battle against members of the Police Mobile Anti-riot Squad (Esmad).

The difficult situation was recorded by a photographer known as Jahfrann, who in an Instagram live connected with Latin American personalities such as the Puerto Rican singer Residente and the Mexican speaker Daniel Habif to show them what was happening in La Luna.

The demonstrations have also left dozens of businesses destroyed and have paralyzed the life of Cali.

The images of long lines to refuel and empty food shelves in some market places and shops have authorities in suspense, seeking a solution to a problem that is not yet critical but is growing rapidly.

Even the Civil Aeronautics of Colombia this Monday temporarily restricted the operations of the Alfonso Bonilla Aragón airport, which serves Cali, due to the demonstrations that constitute the worst crisis of the Duque government.

Colombians also came out to protest in other cities such as Bogotá, Medellín, Barranquilla, Bucaramanga and Manizales, on days in which there were new disturbances.

In the Colombian capital, hundreds of people gathered in front of the condominium where President Duque has his private residence to express their disagreement with the Government.

Apart from Cali, in Barranquilla, capital of the Caribbean department of Atlántico, there were looting of supermarkets and clashes with the public force.

The unions and social organizations calling for the protest once again called for a new day of “national strike” that will take place next Wednesday, May 5.