Some 200 retired Colombian soldiers disturbed a military ceremony attended by President Juan Manuel Santos over what they consider insufficient pensions.
The former military members clashed with on-duty security forces when they tried taking the Boyaca bridge– the site of the battle which secured Colombia’s victory over Spain in 1819– to demand an increase in pensions. According to the protesters, their pensions are too low to meet their basic needs, and the government has not fulfilled its promise to increase the retirees income.
Caracol Radio reported that the former soldiers attempted to take the bridge by force after Santos failed to meet with a delegate of the retirees, after they claimed they had been promised the president would meet with them.