Demonstrators scramble to get rid of a tear gas canister in their midst
Protesters continued their demonstrations outside Duque’s residence on Saturday. Throughout the day thousands packed the streets of Bogota for violent protests. Crowds were cleared with tear gas and one teenager was badly injured. 13,000 soldiers and riot police kept a watch over the city.
On Sunday, President Iván Duque opened a national dialogue that he said will include citizens from all walks of life in tackling issues like corruption and inequality days after one of Colombia’s biggest protests in recent history.
A demonstrator hurls a tear gas canister back to the riot police on the streets of Bogota yesterdayThe Mobile Anti-Disturbances Squadron, (ESMAD in Spanish) intervene groups of protesters to disperse them during the third day of protests in Colombia with gravely injured people in Bogota on SaturdayDemonstrators scramble to get rid of a tear gas canister in their midstThousands of protesters throng in Hippies Park, Colombia on Saturday nightRiot police attempted to force demonstrators from the street as smoke fills the air on Saturday in the Colombian capitalDuque, 43, has been criticized for his economic, social and security policies, as his administration deals with hosting 1.4 million refugees from neighboring Venezuela’s economic meltdown as well as the complex fallout of a 2016 peace deal with FARC rebels (pictured: riot police stand guard Saturday)Tear gas fills the air near officers after it was launched back at them by demonstrators in the cityIn Bogota, some 13,000 soldiers and riot police kept watch over sensitive neighborhoods in the city of seven million (pictured: demonstrators confront officersDemonstrators react as police fires tear gas during a protest at Bolivar SquareBogota Mayor Enrique Penalosa denied that the worst violence was linked to the anti-Duque protests. ‘This is not a strike, or a democratic march, or a ‘cacerolazo,” he said. ‘We’re confronted with a minority of delinquents who are destroying the city.’In the capital, hundreds of people defied the curfew to converge in front of Duque’s home, singing the national anthem and banging pots and pans for an hour (pictured: a protester holds up the white flag)Tanks roll through the streets in Bogota, Colombia, Saturday,Demonstrators light torches as they protest at Hippies Park, as a national strike continues in Bogota
