Tens of thousands of Colombians protest against the leftist president’s reform agenda

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Thousands of Colombians took to the streets Sunday in the latest rebuke of leftist President Gustavo Petro’s reform agenda.

The demonstrations took place in several cities, including the capital. Protesters filled Bolivar Plaza outside the presidential palace in Bogota.

While protests have been a constant since the former leftist guerrilla took office in 2022, they’ve gained momentum of late. Petro has floated the possibility of rewriting the constitution to spur social reforms that he’s been unable to advance in the face of opposition by a hostile congress and conservative business groups.

Petro recently suffered an important defeat when Colombia’s congress refused to pass legislation to boost state control of the country’s health care system aimed at improving and lowering the cost of medical care.

In response to the defeat, Petro ordered by decree the takeover of two of the country’s top medical insurers, on which millions of Colombians depend.

The Associated Press