Colombia: Residents bury themselves to protest evictions (VIDEO)

Residents from Aguachica, a town in northern Colombia, buried themselves in the ground to protest against evictions, according to the BBC.

Nearly 300 families gathered to protest an eviction warning. The plans for the land include 2,000 low income houses which would provide free housing for the poor, said the BBC.

According to Colombia Reports, ten men buried themselves up to their chests in the dirt and rocks.

The 90 families protesting the eviction are all homeless and settled on the privately-owned land.

The town's mayor said, "Everyone wants to enter the program and they think that by invading private land they can guarantee housing for themselves," according to Colombia Reports.

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According to Fox News Latino, more than a third of Colombia's population lives in poverty or destitution, with conditions particularly worse in towns and rural areas.

The study, released by the Colombian government's statistics service, said nearly 19.98 people out of the country's 46 million were either poor or destitute.

Income per capita in urban areas was 566,192 pesos ($315.67) per month in 2011, compared to 196,675 pesos ($109.65) in rural areas.

In late April, President Juan Manuel Santos announced an initiative to provide free housing to 100,000 of Colombia's poorest families within the next two years.

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Here is a video report, courtesy of the BBC: