Colombia death toll from COVID-19 tops 100,000

BOGOTA - Colombia's death toll from COVID-19 passed the 100,000-mark on Monday with a new 24-hour record of almost 650 deaths, the health ministry said. 

After 3 weeks of demonstrations that have brought thousands of people into the streets to protest the government of conservative President Ivan Duque, the South American country of 50 million is suffering its worst moment since the pandemic began. 

It has now recorded 100,582 dead, including 648 in the past 24 hours, the ministry said. 

In proportion to its population, Colombia is reporting the fourth worst death toll in Latin America and the Caribbean, and the sixth for the number of infections, according to an AFP count. 

"More than 10,000 deaths could have been avoided if we had not had these gatherings in the past 6 or 7 weeks," Duque said in a statement. 

The health authorities identified a resurgence of the virus in early April, and slapped restrictive measures such as a nightly curfew on the main cities.

But since April 28, thousands of Colombians have turned out to protest in the street, spurred on by a heavy handed police response, even as the government scrapped a controversial tax hike. 

Agence France-Presse  

Colombia holds gay Miss Universe beauty pageant

MEDELLÍN, Colombia — The Colombian city of Medellin holds its Gay Miss Universe Beauty pageant where transsexuals and drag queens take to the stage and represent a country of their choice after weeks of practicing choreographies and catwalks.

Nine candidates in total, 8 Colombians and 1 Venezuelan, participated in this year’s Miss Universe Gay in Colombia.

Each participant chooses which country he or she wishes to represent .

2019 was the second version of this specific competition, even if according to the organizer there are between 4-8 competitions like this in Colombia per year.

The competition isn’t officially part of Miss Universe The objective is more the creation of a space for the LGBTI community to have fun in and put on a show.

The winner receives certain prizes, of which there is wigs, a million pesos (330 $US) and a ticket to take part in Miss Gay International which takes place in Bogota.

The bar becomes packed for the competition. On March 16th, around 300 people arrived to watch the show which takes places between 11pm and 4am.

source: philstar.com

Facebook dating service rolling out in Colombia

BOGOTA, Colombia  — Facebook said Friday a dating service it teased early this year is being rolled out in Colombia.

The social media giant chose the Latin American country as its test lab because Colombians are particularly avid fans of using social networks and websites to find partners.

The new feature, rolled out in Colombia this week, allows users to create a separate "dating" profile not visible to their network of friends, with potential matches recommended based on preferences and common interests.

The service is programmed not to link up people who are already connected as family or friends, and users of Facebook Dating will also be able to block people if they wish.

A basic chat service will be available, and the site will bar strangers from sending photos, videos or links.


Some 21 million people log in to Facebook every day in Colombia, a country of 50 million people, according to the company.

"We view this as an incredible opportunity to continue helping people build relationships in meaningful ways on Facebook," said Facebook Dating product manager Nathan Sharp.

Facebook's chief Mark Zuckerberg in May announced plans for the new dating feature at the world's leading online social network -- while vowing to make privacy protection its top priority in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

Zuckerberg was emphatic that the focus would be on helping people find partners, not flings.

"This is going to be for building real, long-term relationships, not just hookups," Zuckerberg said in presenting the new feature.

He said the dating offer was built with privacy and safety in mind.

Facebook faced intense global scrutiny over the mass harvesting of personal data by Cambridge Analytica, a British political consultancy that worked for Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.

The company has admitted up to 87 million users may have had their data hijacked in the scandal.

source: philstar.com

Colombia's high court allows adoption by same-sex couples

BOGOTA, Colombia -- Colombia's highest court ruled Wednesday that same-sex couples can adopt children, lifting the last restriction on gays raising kids.

Until now, such adoptions were allowed in this traditionally Roman Catholic country only if one of the partners in the couple was already the child's biological parent.

Even that limited right was established only as recently as February.

The restriction was swept away by the new ruling at the Constitutional Court by a vote of 6-2 after hours of debate.

It said gay couples can adopt children just as heterosexual ones can, so long as they meet all the legal requirements.

"A person's sexual orientation or gender are not in and of themselves indicative of a lack of moral, physical or mental suitability to adopt," chief justice Maria Victoria Calle Correa told a news conference after the court announced its decision.

The Constitutional Court has slowly expanded the list of rights accorded to homosexual couples in this socially conservative country in recent years.

In 2007, it recognized de facto unions for gay couples and granted them joint health insurance coverage.

In 2008, it granted them shared pension rights, and in 2009 it ruled they were also entitled to inheritance rights.

source: interaksyon.com