As of 4 December 2019, a nationwide general strike and accompanying demonstrations are ongoing in Colombia. In the capital Bogota, protesters have begun marching at a number of locations throughout the city and have begun gathering at the city’s main Plaza de Bolívar to participate in the rally; the city mayor reversed the previously enacted ban on the rally at the site. Demonstrators have blocked traffic at the intersections of Carrera 24 and Calle 47, as well as Carrera 18 with Avenida 1 de Mayo. Officials have suspended the Portal de Suba metro service after protesters blocked tracks with garbage containers. Transportation services are highly likely to be disrupted due to the protest actions; a number of Transmilenio bus stations have been suspended due to the ongoing demonstrations.
Elsewhere in the country, protesters have also started gathering to participate in the general strike. In the southwestern city of Cali, protesters are organizing at different locations throughout the city, and in one instance vandalized a bus. Cali authorities closed the Santa Librada, Manzana del Saber and Estadio bus stations as a result of an ongoing demonstration at the Parque de las Banderas. Similar demonstrations are planned in other major cities such as Bucaramanga, Cartagena and Medellín. In Bucaramanga, protesters have gathered at the Parque San Pio, Industrial University of Santander and Luis Carlos Galán Sarmiento Civic Plaza. In Cartagena, demonstrators are expected to march from the Napoleon Perea Recreational Center through Transversal 54, Avenida Crisanto Luque, Peaje Manga, Avenida Jímenez and conclude at the city’s historic center. In Medellín, demonstrators have gathered at the University of Antioquia and blocked the Autopista Norte highway. While organizers have pledged to peacefully carry out the protest actions, violence is an ever-present concern during such gatherings and clashes between police officers and participants are likely. As such, travelers and expatriates in Colombia should limit their movements to the extent possible to mitigate the threat of being collaterally affected by any possible violence at protests.
