Soldiers come out to crack down to stop protests in Colombia – Viva la radio

Duque already announced it last Saturday, accompanied by the army commander. He targeted “those who, through violence, vandalism and terrorism, seek to intimidate society”.

As explained at Channel 3 José Arnaldo Mujica, journalist from VPItv, the first reform is no longer under discussion and a project is being drawn up to unify most of the positions in the country.

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“This Tuesday, there are blockades of important roads leading to the country’s capital and main cities, this has caused delays in the distribution of basic foodstuffs,” he said.

Diego Molano, Colombia’s defense minister, assured on Tuesday that the country guarantees peaceful demonstrations, but rejects the vandalism of recent days.

“So far, there are a balance of 69 damaged transport stations, 36 broken cash machines, 94 banks violated, 14 weigh-ins and 59 vandalized commercial establishments and 254 others in the national territory”, he detailed.

Reporters of the AFP confirmed the presence of military personnel at protests that began across the country on Wednesday, the channel’s website says France 24.

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For “the public, this measure was received negatively as a militarization”, even as a “repression”, warns Eduardo Bechara, professor of government and public policy at the University of the Externado.

And it is that after six decades of an armed conflict that persists despite the signing of peace with the FARC guerrillas in 2016, governments are more used to facing war in the countryside than in urban demonstrations, agree the experts interviewed.

According to the Mediator, the riots and demonstrations leave at least 19 dead. The Ministry of Defense, meanwhile, represents more than 800 injured and hundreds of establishments destroyed.

Cali was the first city to be militarized on Friday, amid excesses that occurred alongside peaceful protests.

Defense Minister Diego Molano announced the deployment of 700 soldiers in the capital of Valle del Cauca (southwest) to confront the “criminal organizations” which orchestrated the riots.

For the deputy director of the Foundation for Peace and Reconciliation, Ariel Ávila, this is an attempt to intimidate social protest.

“I think it is the old strategy of always, that at the point of repression, they bury people. It is a message to put an end to the demonstrations”, explains the researcher.

In Bogotá and Medellín, opposition mayors have rejected offers to militarize their cities. However, soldiers patrol the capital by presidential order.

The number of troops deployed is reserved. In Colombia, 266,606 soldiers and 157,820 police officers report to the Ministry of Defense., according to official data.

Militarization sets in as police are in the eye of the hurricane for the way they crack down on protests against the government.

In 2020, the security forces faced mobilisations against police brutality, killing ten people and injuring more than half a thousand.

The Supreme Court of Justice subsequently ordered the Defense Ministry to apologize for its excesses and to reformulate its protocols.

But complaints are coming back from the hands of NGOs, international organizations and the opposition for alleged abuses committed during the current days.

According to the NGO Temblores, there have been 940 cases of abuse by the police in recent days and “the deaths of eight protesters who were allegedly attacked by the police are under investigation.

On Tuesday, the spokesman for the diplomatic service of the European Union, Peter Stano, in turn expressed concern about the situation in Colombia and assured that “it is really a priority to contain the escalation of the violence and to avoid the disproportionate use of force “.

As, the local UN human rights office denounced in Twitter “threats and attacks”, as well as “shots fired by the police” against a humanitarian commission.

In the same social network, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights urged the state to clarify its involvement in attacks that include sexual abuse.

Meanwhile, the government is silent and only recognizes a civilian and a police officer who died as a result of the protests.

Taking the soldiers to the streets involves “a terrible risk”, since the army is used to fighting armed groups with blood and fire, warns Avila. “It is an excessive response (…) which will increase the number of deaths”, he adds.

For Florent Frasson-Quenoz, specialist in international security, the decision is in line with “far-right voters” who vote for the party in power (Democratic Center), one year before the presidential elections.

It is a return to the policy of the “strong hand” led by the former president Álvaro Uribe (2002-2010), the political mentor of Duque, during his fight against the guerrillas of the left.

Twitter Censored Friday a message from the former president who invited the security forces to “use their weapons to defend their integrity, to defend people and property (…) against terrorist vandalism”.

Under pressure from the protests, Duque withdrew the tax reform proposal and offered to formulate one without the most controversial and aggressive articles with the middle class.

The National Unemployment Committee, which brings together dissatisfied sectors, has announced that it will continue to call for protests to demand that Duque change the course of his policy.

Marcos Calligaris Report.