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Demonstrators in Cali: "The need was a ticking time bomb"
Photo:
Antonia Schäfer / DER SPIEGEL
More than twenty dead, hundreds injured.
Tens of thousands of people have been demonstrating in Colombia for more than a week.
Originally, they took to the streets against tax reform.
But it is about so much more: poverty, social inequality and corruption.
The police and the Esmad special unit use force against the protests.
Fire was opened arbitrarily in Cali, the third largest city in the country.
The spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Colombia, Marta Hurtado, condemned the police operations.
Six demonstrators report what they have experienced in the past few days - and why they are continuing.
Sofía *, 22, the student has been with the protests since the beginning and provides first aid to injured people
“We screamed that they shouldn't harm him, that we wanted to help him. First I ran forward. Then they just shot. There were so many people and I kept hearing gunshots. At some point I ran away. And now Kevin Agudelo is dead. I couldn't do anything. The special unit Esmad has penetrated into Siloé, in our part of town, where we were demonstrating peacefully. I can't believe they really killed him. For what?
I am now convinced that it is about silencing us. The division between rich and poor here in this country is very deep and the rich see us as a threat. I believe that you have such a big influence on politics here that the police are acting in your interests. Basically it's corruption. Yesterday a policeman told me that he really doesn't want to participate. He was only there on command. And then he said: 'Look around, the rich live around the slums - and they sent us to keep you small.' I think he's right.
Still, I didn't expect this brutality.
But a few days ago I saw wealthy local residents shooting at us from their balconies.
They believe we are worth less than them.
The rich are only rich because there are poor.
Because there are people like us who cannot sit out the pandemic in the comfort of their own home. "
Jefferson, 23, participates in the demonstrations as a human rights observer
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Jefferson has witnessed brutal police operations up close.
He doesn't want to show his face out of fear
Photo:
Antonia Schäfer / DER SPIEGEL
“When the protests started, I was at the University of del Valle in the south of the city. The Esmad came within the first half hour. And suddenly there were injuries everywhere from blows to the head and the tear gas cartridges thrown by the emergency services. I counted at least 20. It happened so quickly: we were just holding up posters and minutes later there was so much blood.
I am not saying that the protesters are all peaceful. There is vandalism and rioters. I've seen supermarkets robbed. I find that almost understandable, because behind it there are big companies that don't care. And many people here had nothing to eat for a long time. But of course there are also people who can no longer stop: They attack small traders and private individuals. Sometimes the anger goes the wrong way. But that's how it is when the suffering becomes too great.
Need was a ticking time bomb.
The government said “stay at home during the pandemic, protect each other.” But there was too little help, people ran out of food.
I made my living as a bartender - but the bars are closed.
What shall I live on?
It was said that students should do homeschooling, but the internet doesn't work in the country and many poor families don't have computers.
How should they learn?
I believe that Cali is a strategically important center for the protests because the city is a hub for the food supply in the country.
We can only make ourselves heard through blockades.
So maybe we cause a rethink.
And maybe we'll create a political change in the next elections. "
Diego, 32, is a trained surgeon and treats the injured
“I was out in a van yesterday with a medical team. Clearly marked with red crosses and documents on the panes. We drove to Loma de la Cruz Park, where there were many clashes between police and demonstrators. As soon as we got there, the van was shot at. At least a dozen times, several bullets struck through the doors.
It's not the first time doctors have been attacked. Even a UN task force was attacked. The supply stations are also not safe. I've seen videos of bandages being destroyed or stolen - all by people in plain clothes. I am now convinced that the special police forces have infiltrated the protests. That would also explain why I get threatening phone calls. How else are they supposed to have got my number? They tell me they know my name and address. But I'm here to take care of the injured - on both sides.
I see more and more serious injuries than ever before during protests in Colombia. I have treated many open wounds on the head and eyes, which indicates severe beating. Also some gunshot wounds. In addition, there are airway injuries from the tear gas. That doesn't actually happen that quickly with the approved types of gas. But I found some cartridges that said 2016 was the expiration date. I believe that the gas will become more dangerous over time, otherwise I cannot explain the severity of the injuries. Just yesterday I tried to intubate a man whose throat was badly burned. In my opinion, this cannot come from commercial tear gas.
The cops here are partly out of control.
I faced several with two nurses because they threw gas cartridges at cooks.
I wanted to talk to them, explain that the fenced-in basketball court on which the cooks sat is a supply center.
But they laughed at me.
›Why are you helping people?‹ Someone asked.
›They should kindly help themselves.‹ I don't know what to say anymore. "
Saray, 32, organized the protests in the northwest of the city
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Demonstrator Saray: "I see blood every day"
Photo:
Antonia Schäfer / DER SPIEGEL
»I am not on the front line of the protests, but rather organize, collect information and plan the next few days. Still, I see blood every day. I have not yet been injured myself, but I hear of dead, injured and raped, some on the street! I hardly have any words for what is happening here. It is as if the country's armed conflict has come out of the forest and onto the streets of our cities. But we are not guerrillas or terrorists, we are unarmed. I cannot understand the violence of the police and the military.
We are demonstrating because we have no chance of becoming something in this country.
Like many here, I cannot find a job despite a good education.
I studied public administration and philosophy.
But I can only get a casual job every now and then.
I can't plan for the future with that.
The tax reform was just one trigger for the social explosion that is long overdue in this country.
The local and national governments know our problems.
The time is over in which we can get ahead with requests and proposals.
There are countless documents, statistics and surveys that document poverty, lack of opportunities and youth unemployment.
Now is the time to get up.
President Iván Duque has withdrawn the tax reform, but that's just window dressing.
He has announced that he will be working on a new reform - with the same people who were involved in the planning before.
We are in an economic crisis because of the corona pandemic.
Now is not the time to demand more money from people. "
James, 28, was in the military himself and is now in the front row of the demonstrators
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James lost two friends in the protests and was threatened by the police at home
Photo:
Antonia Schäfer / DER SPIEGEL
“I've got pretty bad burns on my leg.
A gas cartridge hit me earlier.
But I didn't even feel it, I was so scared.
I've been in the front row for days but that's my only injury so far.
I was really lucky.
Many of my friends have disappeared in the last few days and two are now dead. Kevin and Andrés did not survive the protests.
Somehow I can't believe it.
But then I see the military's guns - the guns even the neighbors use to aim at us, and I know I'm unprotected.
The day before yesterday an armed policeman was at my house.
He said I should stop protesting, otherwise he couldn't guarantee my safety.
He said that in front of my mother.
It can happen to anyone here.
Still, I can't just stop.
Otherwise there is no future.
I live with my parents and my sister.
We have only been eating rice and lentils for months.
We can no longer afford meat.
My mother has a weak heart, but there is no money for the medication and we have no health insurance.
I am self-employed because I couldn't find a job.
I was in the military myself and don't understand why the emergency services show no humanity here.
There's a bunch of crazy people in uniform out and about.
I've seen videos of tank operations against civilians.
That has to stop!
Because I don't want to give up my hope that one day I will be able to raise my children here in peace and that we won't have to resolve conflicts through violence.
I want to watch football in a bar with someone who disagrees politically and toast with him at the final whistle. "
Carlos, 37, helps with a supply point that distributes food to demonstrators
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Carlos receives anonymous threatening phone calls: "Where did they get my number from?"
Photo: Antonia Schäfer / DER SPIEGEL
“I've been receiving threatening phone calls since yesterday. I don't know the numbers. There are people on the line who say I'm being watched. I would be accused of showering tear gas on me. I don't know where they got my number from. I didn't do anything. I'm not even in the front row, I provide people with food. I've also brought food to two policemen.
Of course, I am fully behind the protests: Since the pandemic, I have had to decide whether I would rather buy food or clothes or pay the rent. Landlords have kicked people out in many parts of the country because the pandemic left them with no income and unable to pay the rent. Although that's officially forbidden. And now taxes are to be increased, plus the health reform. Even more money is being pulled out of the pockets of people on low incomes.
An egg costs 700 pesos (around 15 cents) instead of 300 pesos (around 6 cents).
How are we supposed to pay for this?
My family lives in the surrounding area.
During the pandemic, they repeatedly did not eat anything for days.
And the congressmen pull in millions and still get their cell phone bills paid in tax money.
Who should still understand that? "
* Name changed by the editors for security reasons. To protect the demonstrators, only their first names are given.