:quality(80)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/semana/V35KA74PW5ERTMFRORPMTZJDQA.jpg "LIVE | Marches Bogotá TODAY Tuesday, February 20, follow the demonstrations live")
Human rights organizations and movements across Colombia scheduled a series of marches on Tuesday, February 20 to demonstrate against the continuous murder of social leaders, peace signatories, and members of the public force. The meeting in Bogotá was scheduled for 5:00 in the afternoon in the Plaza de Bolívar, but it started early in the day. According to Indepaz, as of today, throughout the national territory, 412 peace signatories and 1,607 social leaders have been murdered since the signing of the peace agreement on November 24, 2016, at the Teatro Colón in Bogotá.
The demonstration is called by the movement Defendamos la Paz and the National Table of Social Interlocution for Peace. The initiative has garnered support from political leaders such as senators Iván Cepeda, Humberto de la Calle, former Minister of the Interior Juan Fernando Cristo, Colombian ambassador to the United Kingdom, Roy Barreras, as well as artists, intellectuals, and activists.
The UN has also joined the collective cry of many Colombians to stop the murders of peace signatories. Hundreds of protesters gathered at the Plaza de Bolívar to ask for protection for social leaders and to reject the murder of more than 400 signatories since the signing of the Peace agreement in 2016. Protesters advanced along Carrera 7 and Calle 32, and the official Bogotá transit account reported that a demonstration also advanced on 34th Street and Caracas Avenue, causing road damage.
Additionally, patients protested outside the Ministry of Health, rejecting the reform proposal advanced by the Petro Government. Gustavo Campillo, the spokesperson for patients in Colombia, highlighted the crisis in the health system and the lack of medications for EPS members. Despite the official call for the demonstration at 5 pm, authorities indicated that demonstrations were already taking place earlier in the day. These protests reflect the growing concern and activism in the Colombian society regarding various issues.