Plaza Bolivar lit up by protests against re-election referendum

Dozens of people gathered outside the Colombian Constitutional Court to shine lights on the government building, in a peaceful protest against changing the constitution to allow President Uribe’s re-election, reported Colombian media.

Protesters convened in the capital’s Plaza Bolivar, armed with torches and lanterns, in an event organized by the Citizen’s Alliance for Democracy.

After a full day of demonstrations involving speeches, marching and music, the lights were the final event in a day dedicated to the belief that the 1991 constitution should not be changed.

Protester and former constituent Augusto Ramirez Ocampo explained, “It’s about obtaining the light from the court to illuminate the constitution, so that it protects it.”

Magistrates of the Constitutional Court are in the process of considering the legality of a referendum to change the constitution to allow the second re-election of Presdient Alvaro Uribe.

Recent polls have shown that popular support for Uribe’s re-election to serve a third term is decreasing.

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