120,000 indigenous protesters march throughout Colombia: ONIC

[Judi Lynn]

120,000 indigenous protesters march throughout Colombia: ONIC
posted by Steven Cohen
Oct 15, 2013

Indigenous organizing groups partnered with student activists and other populist social movements Tuesday for a national mobilization to mark the start of indefinite protests.

According to Richar Leguizamo, Director of Communications at the National Organization of Indigenous Colombians (ONIC), roughly 120,000 indigenous protesters alone have taken to the streets since late Monday afternoon, with major demonstrations taking place in 17 states throughout the country.

He told Colombia Reports that protestors have assembled from across Colombia’s various indigenous territories to “demand that the Colombian government treat [their] existence as a priority and not a burden, that the government honor its commitment and responsibility to Colombia’s original people.”

According to Leguizamo, the so-called “MINGA Social, Indigenous, Popular” Movement declared the start of indefinite protests after President Juan Manuel Santos failed to arrange a dialogue session he had previously scheduled with organizers for this past Saturday.

More:
http://colombiareports.co/70000-indigenous-protesters-march-throughout-colombia-onic/

[Judi Lynn]

1. Such an old, very familiar story:

Alleged infiltration by guerrilla groups was the government’s primary justification for the use of force throughout the previous protests, including during one prominent incident — in which President Santos ordered the militarization of Bogota and the deployment of 50,000 army troops to the Colombian countryside — subsequently revealed to be the work of right-wing neo-paramilitary organizations.