Colombia opposition groups launch protest against de la Espriella’s cuts

Former left-wing President Gustavo Petro joined thousands of demonstrators in Bogota in a march against austerity, restored Israel ties.

Demonstrators rally against the government of Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella in Bogota, Colombia, on October 14 [Fernando Vergara/AP Photo]

A coalition of opposition parties, trade unions, indigenous groups and social movements has protested in Colombia against a series of economic and security policies advanced under right-wing President Abelardo de la Espriella.

Thousands marched in major cities including the capital Bogota on Wednesday, the first day of a nationwide campaign led by the country’s former left-wing President Gustavo Petro.

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Under Petro, Colombia expanded access to public universities, increased the minimum wage and improved labour protections for workers.

Opposition groups say many of those reforms are now under threat, as de la Espriella’s government embraces cuts to government programmes.

Colombia’s Congress has until Tuesday to approve its 2027 fiscal year budget. But as part of the new administration’s austerity measures, allies of de la Espriella are advancing proposals to reduce government spending.

De la Espriella has also pledged to turn Colombia away from his predecessor’s left-wing leanings and towards more free-market policies aligned with those of United States President Donald Trump.

Protesters carry a banner depicting a caricature of President Abelardo de la Espriella in Bogota, Colombia, on October 14, 2026 [Fernando Vergara/AP Photo]

The government issued new rules for police ahead of the protests, handing expanded powers to law enforcement to more quickly deal with protesters who vandalise public property or disrupt access to essential services.

“The right to protest is respected, but there is no right to destroy, attack the security forces, assault others or sow chaos,” de la Espriella said in a social media statement announcing the decree.

He added that “violence, vandalism and blockades that trample on the rights of millions of citizens will not be tolerated”.

Indigenous communities and political groups in rural parts of the country sometimes block roads as part of their protests, with impediments to traffic sometimes lasting weeks.

A demonstrator holds up a sign that reads ‘First the rural class’ during a protest in Bogota, Colombia, on October 14, 2026 [Sebastian Barros/AFP]

But critics have pointed out that the protests this week have been largely peaceful.

Many chanted “It will fall”, a reference to the perceived failure of de la Espriella’s government.

A former defence lawyer and millionaire businessman, de la Espriella was a political newcomer when he ran for the presidency this year on a far-right ticket.

He was elected in a June runoff race by a narrow margin. He campaigned on a hardline platform to address crime, immigration and the economy, including proposals to expel millions of migrants from Colombia and shrink the size of the government.

De la Espriella also pledged to backtrack on reforms made under Petro, Colombia’s first left-wing president. He took office in August.

A former left-wing fighter-turned-politician, Petro took part in protests on Wednesday. He was not eligible for re-election in this year’s presidential race; Colombian law currently caps presidents at a single term.

He wrote on social media that the mobilisations were a wake-up call “two months into the start of a tyrannical and imposed government”.

Former presidential candidate Ivan Cepeda mingles with protesters in Bogota, Colombia, on October 14 [Diego Cuevas/Getty Images]

Protesters also expressed concerns about cuts to labour protections and healthcare under the new administration.

“I feel like we have no guarantees and that the little we did obtain … we’re about to lose,” teacher Ester Guerra, 32, told the news outlet AFP in Bogota.

Some demonstrators also took issue with the new administration’s overtures towards Israel. Several carried Palestinian flags, in a sign of solidarity.

On Wednesday, de la Espriella’s government opened a Colombian embassy in Jerusalem , a controversial move as Israel and Palestine have both claimed parts of the city.

Petro had been a staunch supporter of Palestine and had cut relations with Israel over its genocidal war against Gaza. But de la Espriella has moved to restore the severed ties since taking office.

That struck protesters like Jimena Rodriguez, a 20-year-old student, as an effort to ignore accusations of Israeli abuses against Palestinians.

Several noted that de la Espriella’s actions towards Israel mirrored Trump’s, who moved the US embassy to Jerusalem during his first term in 2018.

President de la Espriella “just wants to hand the country over to the United States, to Israel,” Rodriguez said. “I feel dark times are coming.”

前左翼总统古斯塔沃·佩特罗加入波哥大数千名示威者的行列，参加反对紧缩政策和恢复以色列关系的游行。

10 月 14 日，示威者在哥伦比亚波哥大集会反对哥伦比亚总统阿韦拉多·德拉埃斯普里埃拉政府 [Fernando Vergara/美联社照片]

在哥伦比亚，反对党、工会、原住民团体和社会运动组成的联盟举行抗议活动，反对右翼总统阿韦拉多·德拉埃斯普里利亚推行的一系列经济和安全政策。

周三，数千人在包括首都波哥大在内的主要城市举行游行，这是由该国前左翼总统古斯塔沃·佩特罗领导的全国性运动的第一天。

哥伦比亚将武装组织头目引渡至美国，此举标志着哥伦比亚向华盛顿靠拢的趋势（列表1/3）

哥伦比亚和平法庭指控前哥伦比亚革命武装力量成员犯有反原住民罪行（共3项指控中的第2项）

哥伦比亚在耶路撒冷开设大使馆并恢复与以色列的自由贸易（共3条，此为第3条）

在佩特罗的领导下，哥伦比亚扩大了公立大学的入学机会，提高了最低工资，并改善了工人的劳动保护。

反对派团体表示，由于德拉埃斯普里利亚政府削减政府项目，许多改革措施现在都面临威胁。

哥伦比亚国会必须在周二之前批准2027财年预算。但作为新政府紧缩措施的一部分，德拉埃斯普里利亚的盟友正在推进削减政府开支的提案。

德拉埃斯普里利亚还承诺，将使哥伦比亚摆脱其前任的左翼倾向，转向与美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的政策相一致的更加自由的市场政策。

2026 年 10 月 14 日，哥伦比亚波哥大，抗议者举着描绘总统阿韦拉多·德拉埃斯普里埃拉漫画的横幅 [Fernando Vergara/美联社照片]

在抗议活动爆发前，政府发布了新的警察规则，赋予执法部门更大的权力，以便更快地处理破坏公共财产或扰乱基本服务供应的抗议者。

“抗议的权利受到尊重，但没有任何权利进行破坏、攻击安全部队、袭击他人或制造混乱，”德拉埃斯普里利亚在社交媒体上发表声明宣布该法令时说道。

他还补充说，“践踏数百万公民权利的暴力、破坏和封锁行为是绝不容忍的”。

该国农村地区的土著社区和政治团体有时会封锁道路进行抗议，交通中断有时会持续数周。

2026年10月14日，在哥伦比亚波哥大举行的抗议活动中，一名示威者举着一块写有“农村阶级优先”的标语牌。[Sebastian Barros/AFP]

但批评人士指出，本周的抗议活动总体上是和平的。

许多人高喊“它将会垮台”，指的是人们认为德拉埃斯普里利亚政府的失败。

德拉埃斯普里埃拉曾是一名辩护律师和百万富翁商人，今年他以极右翼候选人的身份竞选总统，当时他还是个政坛新人。

他在六月的决选中以微弱优势当选。他的竞选纲领强硬，旨在解决犯罪、移民和经济问题，其中包括将数百万移民驱逐出哥伦比亚以及缩减政府规模的提议。

德拉埃斯普里利亚还承诺将推翻哥伦比亚首位左翼总统佩特罗任内推行的改革。佩特罗于8月就职。

曾是左翼武装分子、后转为政治家的佩特罗周三参加了抗议活动。他没有资格参加今年的总统选举；哥伦比亚法律目前规定总统只能连任一届。

他在社交媒体上写道，这些动员活动是“暴政强加政府上台两个月后的警钟”。

10月14日，前总统候选人伊万·塞佩达在哥伦比亚波哥大与抗议者们在一起。[迭戈·奎瓦斯/盖蒂图片社]

抗议者还对新政府削减劳动保护和医疗保健表示担忧。

“我觉得我们没有任何保障，而且我们好不容易得到的一点点东西……也即将失去，”32岁的教师埃斯特·格拉在波哥大告诉法新社。

一些示威者也对新政府向以色列示好的做法表示不满。一些人挥舞着巴勒斯坦国旗，以示声援。

周三，德拉埃斯普里利亚政府在耶路撒冷开设了哥伦比亚大使馆，此举引发争议，因为以色列和巴勒斯坦都声称对该市的部分地区拥有主权。

彼得罗曾是巴勒斯坦的坚定支持者，并因以色列对加沙发动种族灭绝战争而与以色列断绝关系。但德拉埃斯普里利亚上任后，已着手恢复两国关系。

像20岁的学生吉梅娜·罗德里格斯这样的抗议者认为，这是为了无视以色列对巴勒斯坦人犯下的暴行指控。

一些人指出，德拉埃斯普里利亚对以色列采取的行动与特朗普的做法如出一辙，特朗普在其 2018 年的第一个任期内将美国大使馆迁至耶路撒冷。

罗德里格斯说，德拉埃斯普里利亚总统“只想把国家拱手让给美国和以色列”。“我觉得黑暗时代即将到来。”