More protests in Colombia as government unveils new tax plan

Protests against poverty and inequality have resumed in Colombia as President Ivan Duque presents a $4 billion tax plan aimed at helping the government pay for social programs and pandemic related-expenses

BOGOTA, Colombia -- Protests against poverty and inequality resumed in Colombia on Tuesday as President Ivan Duque presented a $4 billion tax plan aimed at helping the government pay for social programs and pandemic-related expenses. Thousands joined in marches in Colombia’s main cities while Duque outlined to contress his government’s achievements and presented a tax plan for financing subsidies to low income families that have been out of work during the pandemic. The new plan is smaller than a $6.3 billion package that was presented in April and set off huge protests across Colombia, in which dozens of people were killed. The new proposal places a higher tax burden on companies’ earnings while discarding a previous proposal to impose sales taxes on basic items like coffee and salt. Protesters said the new plan does not do enough to boost spending on education and job creation in Colombia, where the economy contracted 7% last year and pushed an additional 3 million people into poverty, according to the national statistics department.