LatinNews Daily - 22 April 2024

*Hundreds of thousands of people have marched in Colombia to protest against the government led by President Gustavo Petro. The largest protests took place in Medellín, the capital of Antioquia department, where local media stated that as many as 300,000 people took to the streets. Turnout in the capital Bogotá was estimated by local media to be around 70,000, while an estimated 40,000 marched in Cali (capital of Valle del Cauca department). Large protests also took place in the cities of Barranquilla (Atlántico) and Bucaramanga (Santander). Writing on social media, Petro claimed that turnout had been lower at around 250,000 nationwide, and said that whilst he “fully respects” the protesters, their calls for him to step down form part of a “soft coup” aimed at derailing his progressive reform agenda. The demonstrations came as Petro remains under significant political pressure, with his government’s flagship health reform bill recently rejected by the senate and mounting scrutiny over allegations of illegal financing of his 2022 election campaign, which is under investigation by the attorney general’s office.