Injured Colombian protester dies on fifth day of anti-government rallies

A teenager who became a symbol of ongoing protests in Colombia when he was injured by a teargas canister died of his wounds late on Monday, after President Ivan Duque met with unions and business leaders on the fifth straight day of demonstrations.

The death of 18-year-old Dilan Cruz, announced by the hospital where he had been receiving treatment since he was hit during a protest on Saturday, is likely to fuel criticism of the crowd dispersion tactics of the ESMAD riot police, which include tear gas and stun grenades.

Read the rest of this story here. This, this and this are other selections from Reuters’ wide-ranging coverage of anti-government demonstrations in Colombia in late November 2019.

Workers at Fura emerald mine in Colombia labor in unsafe conditions: ex-employees

Workers at the Colombian emerald mine run by Canada’s Fura Gems’ - the first publicly-traded emerald miner operating in the South American nation - have been laboring in unsafe conditions and sometimes lack basic safety equipment, according to four former employees.

Luisa Gonzalez - Reuters

Fura set out early last year to revive production at the fabled, four-century-old Coscuez mine, once the Andean country’s largest producer of the gem.

The Toronto-based company promised to operate by the book in a province known for organized crime and dangerous wildcat mining but the sources - who asked not to be identified for fear of reprisals - said it had been falling short.

Luisa Gonzalez - Reuters

The former employees said managers at Fura ignored repeated requests to provide staff with equipment like masks and safety glasses.

Fura managers at the mine denied staff were working without proper equipment. Fura spokeswoman Rosey Perkins said: “All allegations concerning safety and especially our employees are taken seriously.”

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Low coal prices set to hit Colombia's wallet

Colombia, the world’s fourth-largest exporter of coal, faces a potential spending crunch in 2020 as royalties from the fuel decline amid a supply glut and slowing economic growth in China.

The fuel provides some 80% of the Andean country’s mining royalties, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars in income each year, and is the second-largest generator of foreign exchange behind oil.

Government data shows coal exports fell by 18% in the first half of the year, to a value of $3.6 billion. Prices for thermal coal have fallen about 37% since the start of the year and that will affect royalties, which are calculated six months in advance and therefore lag behind price changes.

A decline in royalties could hurt planned investment by President Ivan Duque’s government, which is already grappling with congressional resistance to economic proposals, expensive post-conflict social programs and low approval ratings.

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Colombia's Duque seeks international sanctions on Venezuela to protect region

Colombian President Ivan Duque called on Saturday for coordinated international sanctions targeting Venezuela to help stop President Nicolas Maduro’s support for Colombian rebels and drug traffickers from destabilizing Latin America.

Duque, who accuses Maduro of providing a safe haven for Colombian rebel fighters from the now-demobilized FARC guerrilla group and the still-active ELN rebels, compared the Venezuelan leader to former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, who was put on trial for alleged war crimes in conflicts that destabilised the Balkans.

“We should look at communal sanctions and actions so that the threat of (Venezuela) protecting terrorism in its territory ends,” Duque told Reuters before travelling to the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York.

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Colombia's fight against rebels would be easier without Maduro: minister

Luisa Gonzalez -Reuters

There is “no doubt” it would be easier to combat Colombia’s rebel groups if Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro were no longer in power, Colombia’s foreign minister said, amid accusations that Caracas is providing the groups with shelter.

On Thursday, former leaders from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) announced a new offensive in a video believed to have been filmed in Venezuela.

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