Thousands of Colombians peacefully rallied across the country [9] Oct. 14 against far-right President Abelardo de la Espriella's policies [10]. They criticized [11] his proposed social spending cuts, his alignment with Trump, and his hardline military approach to decades of armed-group violence. Earlier this month, de la Espriella announced a "counterterrorism statute [12]" that many fear could restrict democratic rights. (TNH [15])
Throughout the past week, hundreds of Colombians [16] also gathered in front of Bogotá's National Museum to protest the government's recent decision to remove works of art that it argued promoted terrorism [17]. Protesters were brutalized by riot police [18], who used tear-gas to disperse them.
De la Espriella announced the move [19] last week during a speech [20] in which he declared a wider war against [21] "wokismo," which he called [22] a "freedom-destroying movement." Of the nearly 50 works [23] removed from the museum, the vast majority [24] were dedicated to [25] LGBTQ+ issues, women's rights, the 2016 Peace Agreement, and Colombia's popular social movements. On Oct. 19, a judge in Bogotá temporarily ordered the Ministry of Culture [26] to refrain from removing more works from the museum, citing the need [27] to protect "historical memory." (NACLA Update [28])
