Bogotazo: What’s behind Colombian protests?
Riots over police brutality stem from a perfect storm of pressures
Bogota, Colombia- “Please. Stop, I’m begging you. Please. Enough.” said Javier Ordóñez as police beat and electrocuted him with tasers in a video that lit up social media in Bogota on September 9th. The 42 year old would be declared dead in a hospital after a severe beating inflicted on him by police officers while in their custody.
His crime? Being on the street after curfew amidst lingering lockdown measures.
Protesters gathered at the mini-precinct, or CAI as the sub-stations are called here (pronounced “Kai”) where Ordóñez was severely beaten in Villa de Luz, a neighborhood in the Colombian capital. First they splattered the police station with red paint as they chanted “murderers” and demanded justice, but as the day went on and the only response was tear gas, their rage grew. By late afternoon they were throwing bricks and smashing windows.
Pent up frustration and righteous anger spread through the barrios of Bogota and by nightfall more than 60 CAI’s were besieged by protesters in a torrent of riots that would end in fire and blood.
The riots have claimed the lives of 13 protesters and wounded almost 200. Medical officials in the city have treated…
