World News | Thousands of Colombians Take to Streets to Reject Proposed Reforms, Rebuke President

Bogota, Nov 24 (AP) Thousands of Colombians took to the streets on Saturday to oppose the policies of President Gustavo Petro, who accused demonstrators of trying to destabilize the government.

Protesters in cities including Bogotá, Medellín and Cali decried a series of proposed health, labour and pensions reforms and accused Petro's administration of corruption.

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The crowd, which included retired military officials and opposition lawmakers, waved Colombian flags, with some demonstrators holding signs that read, “No to Petro reforms,” and “No to labour reforms.”

“I never expected to have to take to the streets to protest, to give my voice of rejection to this corruption,” said Luis Carlos Hernández as he marched through the streets of Bogotá, referring to Petro's supporters as “guerrilla bandits.”

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Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who has denied the accusations, said that only some 20,000 people participated in Saturday's demonstrations as he accused them of trying to overthrow the government and mock voters.

“In Colombia, we will stop the coup d'état,” he wrote on X.

Saturday's protest is the latest rebuke against Petro's reform agenda. Protests began after he took office in 2022, but they have recently gained momentum. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)