They are the blue shields, "the first line of defense" (2019 Video) 3:12
(CNN Spanish) -
In many massive protests in Colombia, the Mobile Anti-Riot Squad (Esmad) of the Police is under fire for its actions, which for many are violent and abusive.
For years and more at peak times of public demonstrations, many have called for this police force to be dissolved or, at least, to modify its way of acting.
What is Esmad?
Created in 1999 under the government of President Andrés Pastrana (1998-2002) and later formalized in the government of President Álvaro Uribe (2002-2010), the objective of Esmad is to control riots, crowds, blockades and to accompany evictions from public or private spaces, in places where there is a "possible materialization of terrorist and criminal acts" and to restore order.
What is happening in Colombia?
Tax reform, protests, militarization of cities and threats to the UN
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File photo. Members of the Mobile Anti-Riot Squad (Esmad) fire tear gas during a student protest in Medellín, Colombia, in February 2020. (Credit: JOAQUIN SARMIENTO / AFP via Getty Images)
How is Esmad regulated?
Regarding the May 2021 demonstrations, Defense Minister Diego Molano referred to the regulations governing Esmad and defended the "proportional use of force" made by this police force.
He said that its protocols are governed by Law 1801 of 2016, Decree 003 of 2021 and Resolution 02903, which contains the regulations for "the use of force and the use of weapons."
Molano said that Esmad members receive courses on crowd and riot control, employment seminars on proportional use of force, update seminars on crowd management and control, seminars on human rights with training of more than 90 hours.
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And that acts with protocols before and during their actions with an accompaniment of the Public Ministry to verify the elements of the service, that they have the correct identification of their agents.
"Before and during always protocols are practiced and the instructions of strict adherence to human rights and the strict use and strict adherence to the legitimate use of force are reinforced," Molano said on Tuesday.
How is Esmad made up?
This unit of the National Police, which is attached to the Ministry of Defense, is made up of about 3,500 police officers distributed in 23 specialized anti-riot squads, in 17 of the 32 departments of Colombia, and in Bogotá, Medellín and its metropolitan area, and Cúcuta .
The annual budget of the Riot Police is 490,000 million pesos, almost 1.4 million dollars, according to the local press.
The Ombudsman's Office expressed its concern "about the excessive use of force by Esmad" in the demonstrations in Bogotá in 2019, regarding the shooting by an Esmad member that was received by Dilan Cruz, an 18-year-old young man who He was shot dead at a protest in downtown Bogotá in November of that year. According to Legal Medicine, Cruz's death was "violent" and the result of a "homicide": the young man suffered a "penetrating head trauma caused by impact ammunition, fired by a firearm."
In a 2020 document, the Supreme Court of Justice ordered Esmad to suspend the use of shotguns and referred to the death of Dilan Cruz in the November 2019 protests in Bogotá, who “was wounded in the head by Esmad with ammunition type beang bag and, as a result of the injuries suffered, he died two days later, ”according to the Court.
5 phrases from the interview of the former president of Colombia Álvaro Uribe in CNN's Conclusions
(Credit: JOAQUIN SARMIENTO / AFP via Getty Images)
They ask that the ESMAD be dismantled
Esmad has been criticized for its behavior.
Many have accused this force of using weapons against citizens in protests.
Colombian President Iván Duque previously said that he will not dismantle this force, since "Esmad is part of the public force at the service of Colombians, it cannot be dismantled."
According to an investigation by the Center for Popular Research and Education, CINEP, from the creation of Esmad in 1999 to 2019, there have been 43 cases of "extrajudicial executions" involving the mobile squad.
Most of these events have been registered in social mobilizations, but they have also occurred in evictions, peasant concentrations, and even at the exit of a soccer match, according to CINEP.
The director of the Colombian Police, Major General Jorge Luis Vargas, said on Tuesday that within the framework of the current demonstrations there have been "multiple interventions by Esmad against the riots, never against the peaceful demonstration."
The Defense Minister said on Tuesday about the demonstrations in several cities of the country, many of which have turned violent, that complaints have been filed for the actions of Esmad against protesters.
According to Molano, in recent days 29 disciplinary investigations have been opened, two policemen have been identified and linked to investigations;
7 criminal investigations have been opened that have been assumed by the Public Prosecutor's Office, and 5 investigations that have been assumed by the military criminal justice system.
The investigations seek to determine whether Esmad's actions have not followed the force's protocols.
The Ministry of Defense has said that the actions of the Mobile Anti-Riot Squads (Esmad) of the National Police occur "exclusively in the face of violent and irrational actions that constitute a crime, violate people's rights and are not peaceful demonstrations."
What weapons does the Esmad use?
The Esmad uses "Bean bags" or shot bags.
It also uses gas cartridges of 37 and 40 mm smoke grenades, all of these known as "less lethal" weapons, according to the Police.
These are the so-called 'less lethal' devices with which #ESMAD does its job.
Once again we demonstrate to public opinion that @PoliciaColombia is a transparent institution, respectful of Human Rights and IHL.
We are a #PoliceParaLaGente.
pic.twitter.com/DyH6Un8Eiv
- Major General Jorge Luis Vargas Valencia (@DirectorPolicia) November 28, 2019
Senator Jorge Enrique Robledo, a prominent leftist leader, called on the Government to prohibit "immediately" the use of this type of weapon that was fired at Dilan Cruz, as he says its strength is "much higher than that of the pellet "and can" do immense damage ", as happened with the young Dilan Cruz in the past.
Esmad has been accused of using "unconventional" weapons, something that the Defense Ministry has denied.
In 2019, the then Minister of Defense, Carlos Holmes Trujillo, said that all the weapons used by the public force during the protests are endorsed by the UN and by the Resolution of the National Police that regulates this force.
Injuries that guns can cause
A demonstration in Cali, Colombia, on May 3, 2021, for the death of Nicolás Guerrero, who was allegedly killed by Esmad in the protests against the government of Iván Duque. (Credit: LUIS ROBAYO / AFP via Getty Images)
The Defense Ministry said that the weapons can cause injuries such as penetration or laceration of the skin, may require extraction, can lacerate the eyes, generate fractures, concussions, injuries to internal organs, hemorrhages and if the shot is at close range and above the chest, abdomen or head, "these injuries can be fatal."
"As these are less lethal weapons, there remains a risk and recognition of associated injuries," he added.
"Those injuries ... can be fatal."
Regarding the request that Esmad stop using the weapons it uses, the then director of the National Police of Colombia, General Óscar Atheortúa, said that it would be necessary to request the international authorities to modify their protocols for the use of weapons. of Esmad and its protocols.
"They would be called to tell us if there is any modification or different analysis because they were made based on reliable studies that you can find on the networks," said Atehortúa.
Court ordered Esmad to stop using shotguns
In 2020, the Supreme Court of Justice of Colombia ordered President Iván Duque and all authorities involved in the control of social protests to adopt measures to guarantee the right to peaceful protest.
The Civil Cassation Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice ordered the suspension of 12-gauge shotguns used by agents of the Mobile Anti-Riot Squads of the National Police, "the neutrality of the national government" including the "non-stigmatization of those who protest" as well as the creation of a “work table” to restructure the use of force in mobilizations.
ESMAD Protests in Colombia