Clashes Erupt as Colombians Protest Tax Hikes

BOGOTA, COLOMBIA - Tens of thousands of protesters across Colombia took to the streets Wednesday in a nationwide strike that ended in violent clashes between riot police and demonstrators.

The protests came at a time of soaring COVID infection rates in the South American country, where a third wave of the virus has threatened to overwhelm hospital intensive care units.  Despite a court order to postpone the strike over concerns of the potential consequences on health systems, masses filled the streets of some of Colombia’s major cities. The strike, known as the Paro Nacional, was a reaction to proposed tax hikes by the administration of embattled Colombian President Iván Duque, but the marches soon became a backlash to tensions and economic turmoil caused by the pandemic.