may 2021

“As full of spirit as the month of May”

– William Shakespeare

“No need to pay or pray today as we play away without delay without dismay along the bay all day this life-long May, no need to pay, no need to pray, no need to pay”

– May Klite

“May the pretty May has adorned the ruins
With ivy, Virginia creeper and roses
The Rhine wind shakes the wicker on the edge
And the reeds and the naked flowers of the vines”

– Apollinaire

2020   2019   2018   2017  2016  2015   2014   2013

April 2021 here…June 2021 here

29/5/21:

Israel, Haifa: Crimethinc report on revolt – an eyewitness account

T. writes:

I like some parts of it, some less. For example, he justly critiques the left/NGO’s etc. for trying to recuperate the revolt (I imagine this happens on both the Jewish-in-solidarity side and Palestinian side), but talks about it only towards the end, in a kind of general way that you can find in almost all anarchist critiques but without providing enough specific details of how it was manifested in the current revolt. And this is important, especially since one of the main obstacles for creating a movement of revolt in Israel/Palestine, which he does talk about, is exactly this reformist cosmetic approach of people claiming to oppose the current reality and who want to “live in peace together”, “coexistence” etc.while taking for granted the cultural segregation and the false national identity/unity in the Jewish and Palestinian side on which the apparatus of repression, apartheid and racism depends on. And especially considering the scope of the leftist/reformist recuperators whose scope I think is much broader than he presents. But then again, he was actually involved in the events and has been living there, and I don’t.

Equally important and interesting is the complete lack of any mentioning of  the totalitarian management of Covid19 in Israel/Palestine during which this revolt took place…

Otherwise it give useful information of how the events rolled out and some historical context.

However, the Bonnano quote at the end of the text is something I would expect to see from a leftist or statist rather than someone claiming to be libertarian (he refers there to “the freedom of peoples” and to “the Israeli people” and “Palestinian people” – devious concepts which play into the hands of the same politics that creates things like the state of Israel and Free Palestine).

But on a more positive note, this is the part in the text I appreciated the most:

“We hear a lot of talk about “co-existence” lately, especially in mixed
cities like Haifa—about how the riots have damaged the “co-existence”
between Jews and Arabs. This is a myth. This co-existence is a coded way
to describe living under Jewish supremacy, implying that the
Palestinians should keep quiet and erase themselves in order to fit in.
The Israeli population that celebrated “Independence Day” just a month
earlier will never see that as a provocation in a historically
Palestinian city that suffered one of the most brutal attacks during the
Nakba—but if Palestinians dare to show that they exist, they will pay
severely. Co-existence is a counter-insurgency operation.

It’s hard to predict what will happen next. The Shabab fought bravely
against the police and liberated some territories, temporary autonomous
zones in which the state wasn’t present for just one night and you could
walk freely, beyond clouds of tear gas, and imagine a different reality.
But they should not be free from criticism. Many of the attacks had a
nationalistic character, and they did some things that are hard to
defend. Attacking synagogues, buses, and random people wasn’t the best
approach to the situation. What we desperately need right now is a joint
insurrection, co-resistance, involving Jews and Arabs and all the people
of this land, against all the authorities that keep us down and prevent
us from seeing each other as fellow human beings. In the spaces of
revolt, we must create autonomous liberated territories in which we
could construct new ways of seeing each other and the world around us—to
reinvent living, sharing a space as equals.

Unfortunately, for the time being, this is a fantasy. Too much blood has
been spilled for people to trust each other. You can feel the tension
everywhere—we live together in this city, but invisible mental borders
divide us constantly.”

24/5/21:

Venezuela, Bolivar: looting in 2 towns after shopkeepers refuse certain bills

“In the towns of Guasipati and El Callao, in the state of Bolívar, looting took place on the morning of Monday 24 May. The reason was the refusal of transporters and traders to continue receiving the Bs. 50,000 note…”We have an unconfirmed figure of 18 looted businesses in Guasipati. In El Callao they have reported an irregular situation and tell us that there was looting. ..Bermúdez said that the decision by shopkeepers not to accept the 50,000 bolívares banknotes led to the looting, due to the dissatisfaction of the inhabitants who, when they went to buy products, were left with the money in their hands…”There are businesses where they opened holes in the concrete walls and broke in”…Last week there were protests in the towns of San Félix and Puerto Ordaz, Caroní municipality, when transporters in these two areas refused to receive the 50,000 bolívares note.”

South Africa, Western Cape: cops use rubber bullets and teargas against land invaders demanding land to build on themselves

“No land, no vote’…Why should we vote?”

US, Maryland: a driving lesson

27/5/21:

Lesotho: cops kill woman during pay dispute clashes

“A woman has died after being shot during violent clashes between factory workers and police in Lesotho as trade unions say they have lost control over angry protests over pay. Demonstrations spilled over into violence in what is the second week of industrial action, with looting and damage to several businesses in the capital Maseru. Lesotho’s 50,000 factory workers are demanding a 20% salary increase for the lowest paid employees, who take home the local equivalent of £113.73 a month. The employers say they can only pay a 5% increase because of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on their businesses.The strike started two weeks ago and workers have been fighting running battles with police and army officers, who have been blocking the protests, which they say are “in contravention of Covid-19 regulations”. Last week, workers blocked roads with rocks, logs, broken streetlamps and rubbish bins, which the police dispersed with a water cannon. The protests turned violent after the government announced that it had engaged the International Labour Organization (ILO) to mediate the standoff. Some of the protesters went on a looting spree, mainly targeting Chinese-owned businesses…Many shops and warehouses were left empty while some protesters also took gas cylinders on Tuesday evening. The looting only ended when armed police and army officers were deployed. Sam Mokhele, from the National Clothing Textile and Allied Workers Union (NACTWU), told the Guardian on Thursday: “It is unfortunate that we lost one of our members, Motselisi Manase, who worked in the packaging department at Nien Hsing textile factory. It is sad that neither the police nor the army, who were both present, are acknowledging the tragic death.”…Last month, three workers were hospitalised after police shot at demonstrators with rubber bullets. In November last year Chief Justice Sakoane Sakoane criticised the police for “state-sponsored violence” against civilians in violation of constitutional provisions guaranteeing their freedom from cruel, degrading and inhuman treatment. He awarded a man from Mafeteng, Tšolo Tjela, who was tortured and humiliated by police officers in 2015, the equivalent of £20,500 in claims. After the police appealed the ruling, the court of appeal changed the award to £12,800. The textile workers accuse the government, which is charged with mediating between the workers and factory owners as well as setting the minimum wage, of insincerity in its dealings. They say the move to engage the ILO was never discussed in the unions’ engagements with a ministerial subcommittee set up to look into the matter. Unions say they are no longer in control of the angry workers, who argue that their earnings can no longer sustain them as prices of goods have increased dramatically since the first Covid-19 lockdown last year. Cooking oil alone has more than doubled in price. Prime Minister Moeketsi Majoro on Wednesday evening said a new salary would be published on 16 June and encouraged the strikers to return to work. But the unions responded that workers would “stay at home until they have a concrete promise that they would get salary increments” despite the threat of having their salaries for May docked for the days that they have been out of work. According to unions, 95% of the workers are women, and low wages exacerbates their vulnerability in a country with a high prevalence of violent crimes against women.”

23/5/21:

France, Bordeaux: clashes between youths and cops – fireworks, stones and a molotove v. flashballs and teargas

22/5/21:

US, California: cops, cop vehicles and businesses attacked as cops clamp down on illegal beach party…Video here

19/5/21:

Belarus: anarchist publication about last 9 months since the start of the uprising

17/5/21:

France,  Val d’Oise: cars burnt, heavy-duty fireworks fired at cops on anniversary of cops “accidentally” running into and killing 18-year-old on motorbike

Video here.

16/5/21:

Germany, Berlin: cop harassment at curfew-covid time provokes angry yet fun-loving response

15/5/21:

France, La Reunion: youths flout curfew, burn bins, clash with cops

Spain, Pamplona: cops attacked with bottles etc., skips burnt, as they try to enforce Covid restrictions; illegal party broken up

14/5/21:

Colombia: the rage continues – clashes in 5 towns and cities; cops shot; roads blockaded; statues pulled down; banks smashed;  looting [in future all reports about Colombia will appear here]

Sample quotes:

US, Texas: Report on victory of tenants’ 2 month rent strike

France, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes: 4th night of car burning etc.

13/5/21:

Colombia: clashes and road blockades continue in 4 towns and cities; supermarkets looted  [in future all reports about Colombia will appear here]

Sample quote: “…a few vandals… attacked the facilities of the municipal mayor’s office and some financial and commercial institutions in the historic centre with potato bombs, stones and firebombs” 

Fairly interesting article here

UK, Glasgow: neighbourhood solidarity frees 2 people from immigration enforcement

12/5/21:

Colombia: clashes in 5 towns and cities [in future all reports about Colombia will appear here]

10/5/21:

Colombia: clashes in Bogotá, Cali and Bucaramanga as talks between strike committee and government break down…sit-in of bus terminal broken up by riot cops, 2 buses destroyed, restaurant looted…Report from Bucaramanga [in future all reports about Colombia will appear here]

Video of barricade building in Cali…More here

9/5/21:

France, Var: cop car burnt, cops attacked with fireworks etc.

“Three cars, including one belonging to the municipal police, burned, shop windows smashed, street furniture ransacked, rubbish bins set on fire….Residents of this sector halfway between Fréjus and Saint-Raphaël called the police, around midnight, to complain about noise pollution. On the spot, the police officials were attacked as soon as they arrived by several dozen young people. They were fired upon with mortars and projectiles, and had to call in reinforcements. “Between 30 and 40 individuals began by setting rubbish bin fires” on a major shopping street that runs alongside a sensitive neighbourhood, the national police reported, before throwing projectiles at the police…”It starts with a simple control to ask the young people to return to their homes because they are causing a nuisance to the residents. They simply prevent them from sleeping. And it ends up as an ambush, with injuries, burnt vehicles, damaged shops…”…A two-wheeler business was set on fire as well as street furniture. Seven to eight shop windows were damaged and three cars were burnt, including one of the municipal police, according to the fire brigade and the police. The burnt municipal police vehicle was parked and empty, on the edge of the street where the violence was concentrated. It was set on fire when the troublemakers were dispersed….For the moment, none of the troublemakers have been arrested. Gérald Darmanin announced this Sunday morning the deployment in the town of “a company of CRS, that is to say 70 police officers, as reinforcements this evening to ensure that republican order is respected”. The Minister of the Interior said that he had “full support for the injured police officers”.” Video here

Germany, Munich: cops trying to enforce Covid regulations in park forced to temporarily retreat when attacked with bottles

8/5/21:

Spain, Majorca: riot as youths demonstrate after sit-in against Covid restrictions and curfews

“Violent disturbances and police charges this midnight in the centre of Palma, after a concentration of groups of young denialists anti-restrictions against the maintenance of the curfew in the Balearic Islands… A night that ended with 16 protesters arrested – one of them a minor – 4 police officers injured and huge destruction. Dozens of demonstrators – most of them without masks – gathered at around 11.30 p.m. this Saturday in Plaza España in Palma. They  launched proclamations calling for the resignation of the president of the Balearic Islands, Francina Armengol and  staged a sit-in, during which they have questioned in a manifesto the vaccine against COVID, which they have called “experimental”; they have accused the institutions of being “dictatorial”: “They are controlling us with fear” and have rebelled against the mask: “A person who receives 20% less oxygen is risking their health”…The protests of those present progressively became louder and louder, at which point the sit-in was lifted and confrontations with the officers began to take place, with the cry “We are not afraid”… it was an unauthorised protest… repeated warnings from the police only served to heat up the crowd, who, with proclamations of “freedom”, ignored them and opted to block traffic on the Avenidas as they passed through Plaza España. They broke and threw numerous items of street furniture at the officers, as well as several glass bottles. The officers, for their part, responded with several police charges. .. four officers were injured by the throwing of cobblestones, stones and bottles by the radicals…Several demonstrators overturned containers in Carrer Eusebi Estada, trying to set them on fire and set up barricades to cut off the street, although the officers were able to clear them quickly. There was also constant stone-throwing at vehicles parked in the area….The police were repeatedly applauded from balconies and windows by neighbours, some of whom collaborated with the officers, showing them where the violent people had gone or where they were hiding. Some of them dispersed and, faced with the action of the officers, chose to hide in doorways or under cars. During the rally and the clashes with the police, there was constant criticism of the effectiveness of the vaccines against the coronavirus, and adjectives such as “farce” or “experiment” regarding the vaccination plan.” Video here

Note the knee-jerk caricature “denialist” without even a gesture towards providing evidence. For the reader who accepts this “Covid-denialist” has become a put-down endlessly repeated, as an easy way of pushing away all questioning, a soothing  mantra to push away the anxiety, to go back to  sleep. One can dispense with actually ‘thinking’ it – that is, with going through the complicated logical acts involved in verbal formulation of it, an examination of the contradictions of the facts, of how one selects the facts, of how they are interpreted.  The concrete melts into an easy cliché and no one seems able to think of expressions that are not unearned received ideas, that are not a ready-made response to something that may well be far more nuanced than the usual either/or Manichean choices proffered by a servile media. Such mechanization is essential for the repression of critique. A phrase becomes a magic wand that waves away all arguments, a method of repeating what society has proclaimed as being as taken-for-granted as the blueness of the sky without making the effort to get your head around what someone is in fact saying so as to contest it honestly. And when criticism  can’t be contested honestly it can only be utterly distorted to fit into something one has already found arguments against. This unthinking language is the ideological cage of the spectator who accepts without question being caged by the language of the consensus, the refuge of the ruling society. And acceptance of the language also becomes practical acceptance of the rules of this cage: follow the experts’ rules and you won’t get sick. When hierarchical power wants to avoid resorting to its material arms, it relies on dominant language, the language of domination, to guard the oppressive order. No need to try to think for oneself: thinking is thus reduced to the level of industrial processes, subjected to a tight schedule – a short cut which, in short, cuts off all chance of communication. As part of the reproduction of ideology, it contributes and intensifies divisions among those who potentially could contest this world, divisions reinforced because the working class has already been weakened by years and years of retreat from revolutionary perspectives.

7/5/21:

France, Paris: reports on clashes outside blockaded school; teachers show solidarity with high school students

“A number of teachers have been on strike since the beginning of the year to support the students in their struggle against the forces of law and order… Teachers went on strike on Monday to support them against the police…discontent is rising at the Victor-Hugo high school (IIIe) in Paris. Its students intend to block the doors of the school on rue Sévigné on Tuesday morning. They are demanding the abolition of the grand oral, the flagship measure of the reform of the baccalaureate, and of the oral test of the French baccalaureate. “After the police violence that we suffered on Friday, we hesitated to continue our movement. But finally, we are decided to maintain the pressure”, explains Océane Simenon, a senior student and spokesperson for the students who says she fears “an escalation”. On Monday, teachers from the school, located a stone’s throw from the Carnavalet museum, went on strike to protest against “police violence” that they say they have witnessed. “I saw the police directing their tear gas in the faces of the students about twenty times, hitting them with their shields several times and punching a young man in the head when he was holding on to a fence,” said a maths teacher. “We were not there to support their movement but to form a security cordon between the students and the police in order to prevent the outbursts that had already taken place on Wednesday, during a first mobilisation, from happening again”, the teacher said. The demonstrators also denounced “police violence”. “There were more than a hundred of us gathered in front of the school, early in the morning, when the CRS cleared the rubbish bins that were blocking the entrance to the school. We then formed a human chain and the police armed with truncheons and shields took position and gassed us. Then we held a sit-in in the street and raised our hands in the air to show that we were peaceful, and we were subjected to violence again,” says Océane. At the rector’s office, they say “it was a minority strike movement with only a few teachers on strike. There was no new blockade in this school or in any other school in the academy”. The rectorate recalled that the intervention of the police was aimed at lifting “an illegal blockade” and allowing “a rapid resumption of classes”. “There was no question of letting students block the street. This situation presented security risks. “”

6/5/21:

Colombia: further clashes in 4 cities…English language report here…Cali: cops in plain clothes fire live rounds at protesters from van, then run away when fired on by soldier… Santander: clashes in 7 different towns as protesters block roads, including looting in Barrancabermeja

See also “Colombia – present day to 2019”

Burkina Faso,  Ouagadougou: high school students from different schools burn tyres, throw stones in protests against education reforms intensifying selection

France, Oise: high school pupils fire fireworks at school and at woman in charge of discipline

5/5/21:

Colombia: clashes continue in 9 different cities and towns

Sample quotes:

“…riots and clashes in the centre of Bogota. A group of people tore down the fences separating the Plaza de Bolivar from the Capitol and then attacked the building with stones and other objects, and tried to enter while Congress was in session, something that was prevented by the Esmad, who dispersed the attack with tear gas…A motorbike goes up in flames..A protester attacks a bank during a new day of demonstrations in Bogota…Thousands of people returned to the streets of Colombia on Wednesday to take part in the second “national strike” in protest against the government of Ivan Duque, who today began talks with different political, economic and social sectors, but without inviting leaders of the protesters or the opposition… at least 19 dead and 800 injured by repression in five days of protests against tax reform. ..Bogota mayor calls for army deployment in the face of tonight’s violent protests. The demonstrations began on 28 April against the Colombian government’s already withdrawn tax reform and continue today, among other things, in rejection of police brutality,which according to the NGO Temblores has claimed the lives of 37 people in the last eight days…On the eve of the “national strike” called by trade unions and workers’ centres against the health reform, at least 72 civilians and 19 police officers were injured in a riot in Bogotá in which vandals attacked 23 police stations, one of which was set on fire with 10 officers inside who managed to get to safety…Duque brings tanks and military onto Colombia’s streets, stoking unrest at protests |…A group of people tore down the fences separating the Plaza de Bolivar from the Capitol and then attacked the building with stones and other objects, and tried to enter while Congress was in session, something that was prevented by the Esmad, who dispersed the onslaught with tear gas.”.

“During the day of protests that continued in the city of Barranquilla in the afternoon, there were disturbances of public order where vandals looted commercial premises and led clashes with the Esmad.”

“During this eighth day of protests several clashes between authorities and demonstrators are recorded in different parts of the country’s capital…. Duque announces $10 million reward for vandals and rejects violence in national strike…One of the most critical points is the Plaza de Bolivar. There, a group of protesters clashed with Esmad troops.The NotiCentro 1 CM& news team recorded how a police motorbike was left on Carrera 9 and Calle 12, near Plaza de Bolívar, after it was burnt. Similarly, in the centre of Bogotá in the afternoon the situation was complicated when demonstrators and authorities clashed on the main road.”

See also “Colombia – present day to 2019”

France, Brittany: high school students clash with teargassing cops as they blockade their school  demanding Bac exams be cancelled and based on continuous assessment given Covid health problems and the fact that they’ve only had 6 months of schooling…Marseille: similar blockade, cop knocks over youth with his motorbike

UK, London: electricians occupy offices of company in movement against de-skilling

4/5/21:

Colombia: clashes in 12 towns and cities as movement grows

“One of the most reprehensible events was the damage caused to the statue of Peter Manjarrez [a singer of corny popular folk music, still alive] located at the roundabout of the Transport Terminal, from where the protesters took Simon Bolivar Avenue and clashed with the Esmad. It was a reprehensible act, the right arm of the sculpture of the singer Peter Manjarrés was torn off. More than a hundred young people who were carrying out a protest arrived at the roundabout and destroyed part of the monument of the ‘Caballero del Vallenato’.”

Police station torched, Bogota

“A mob set fire to a police station in Bogotá on Tuesday, with 10 officers inside who managed to escape the flames..According to the authorities, the Police Immediate Attention Centre (CAI) in the La Aurora neighbourhood, in the south of the city, was set on fire when there were 10 officers inside, five of whom were injured. …The Secretary of Government of Bogotá, Luis Ernesto Gómez, assured that 16 CAI have been “vandalised” in Bogotá, including the one in La Aurora. “At this hour there is an escalation of violence in the city, here in Biblioteca Tintal they have just incinerated a SITP (Integrated Public Transport System) bus and in other parts of the city,” …The clashes between the uniformed police and the police in Bogotá began in the afternoon in various sectors in the south of the city and spread to other areas where social organisations have denounced the excesses of the Esmad during the night. One of the most difficult situations is being experienced in Portal Americas, in the west of the city, where clashes have lasted for hours, at least three people have been injured and a bus was burned, according to the authorities. There were also disturbances in the Castilla neighbourhood, where demonstrators were repressed by the Esmad and the CAI was also attacked. In other cities such as Cali (southwest), where an unknown number of people have died during the protests, clashes continued despite the fact that five people died …” – here

See also this anarchist report on the situation and its history.

“…The final straw that set off the protests we saw this April was the proposal of the so-called “Solidarity Financing Law,” a tax reform that will impoverish the majority of the population. Under the pretext of reducing the deficit that it had created with the last reform, Duque’s administration came up with the terrible idea of increasing the cost of living in one of the most unequal countries in the world. It’s shocking that in the midst of a crisis, the Colombian government would decide to raise food taxes for the lower and middle classes. It makes no sense to raise the price of food when the population is going hungry. It is even more outrageous that the proposed reforms will not only harm everyday people but further enrich the country’s wealthiest monopolies…laws are approved behind closed doors, without public debate. One of the most obvious examples of this is the legal reform that will make changes to the Colombian healthcare system. Introduced on March 16th, 2021, it has still not been passed by Congress, but its supporters in the legislature pulled secretive moves the night of April 26 to try to push it through while attention was fixed on the tax reform. This health reform could be worse than COVID-19 itself. Essentially, it is intended to implement the full privatization of the Colombian healthcare system. We will have to pay coverage fees for pathology, or the EPS (Colombia’s public health insurance) will deny us medical attention. People who require medical attention through the EPS will have to demonstrate that they are taking good care of themselves and did nothing to cause their illness or injury; if their insurance provider can prove otherwise, it will be able to deny them coverage, forcing them to pay out of pocket. This program is also intended to end public municipal vaccination programs—at the peak of the pandemic!—and to give insurance providers authority to decide how to offer these services and to whom. This reform would allow multinationals and transnational pharmaceutical companies to impose prices and market rules for healthcare in Colombia. It would end health insurance discounts for those in professions including education, manufacturing, and the armed forces. Hospitals will have to demonstrate results in a proposal gruesomely similar to the “results” that the Uribe government demanded of soldiers, which resulted in over 10,000 “false positives”—the practice of extrajudicial execution in which the government and military kidnapped and murdered young people, then falsely reported them as FARC-EP combatants in order to fill quotas. Similarly, it’s estimated that the current health law that privatized the health system in 1993 has led to one million deaths through lack of medical attention or negligence, inflicting even more casualties than the armed conflict…on May 1, attendance in the protests exceeded all expectations and many other cities joined in. By this point, demonstrations were taking place in more than 500 cities across the country. Our memory from other difficult struggles, passed down to us from other times by our parents and grandparents, reminds us that when the people unite, there is no power more transformative. Through their police abuse complaint platform “GRITA,” by 11 pm on May 1, the human rights organization Temblores had received reports of 940 complaints of police violence, 92 victims of physical police violence, 21 people murdered by the police, four victims of sexual abuse at the hands of police officers, and 12 people shot in the eye by police…”

See also “Colombia – present day to 2019”

France, Essonne: cops hit by breeze blocks, heavy-duty fireworks and stones by about 100 people as they carry out control for drugs

3/5/21:

Colombia: clashes in 11 towns and cities as movement continues  following resignation of Minister of Finance and withdrawal of tax hikes on essential subsistence goods; unions call for general strike on May 5, demanding, among other reformisms, the introduction of basic income & free tuition

Sample quotes:

“The protesters, according to El Tiempo, claim that it is no longer just about the tax reform or the resignation of the Finance Minister. They say they want changes to the health reform and are seeking a fairer society, after people reported cases of abuse of authority.”

“Several unknown persons stoned three Transcaribe stations,… as well as the windows of banks and other entities were also vandalised…Transcaribe strongly rejected the attacks suffered during the demonstrations when unknown persons attacked the Centro, Chambacú and Lo Amador stations with stones and blunt objects, destroying their windows. The operation of the mass transport system had to be suspended. First because of the taxi drivers’ strike that caused chaos in a large part of the city, and then because of the protests that continue tonight.”

Cameroon, Foumban: courthouse torched after medicine seller dies in custody

Foumban courthouse

2/5/21:

Colombia: withdrawal of tax reform  that incited general strike and riots does not discourage continued clashes in 5 cities

Bucaramanga: bank torched

“Despite the fact that the government of President Duque withdrew the tax reform, protests against the national government continued this Sunday in Quindío. Security disturbances in the centre of Armenia due to infiltrators in the protest with the intention of attacking commerce … occurred this Sunday night. The timely reaction of the authorities, with tear gas, controlled the situation, after acts of vandalism in the midst of protests that completed their fifth day. The disturbances reached the mayor’s building itself, where the demonstrators threw stones and pebbles, causing some windows to break. The situation was brought under control and the demonstrators were dispersed. Some shops were affected by the demonstrators who damaged the windows of some supermarkets and chain stores with stones, including D1 in the centre of Armenia. In social networks some videos have been published in which a sector of the protesters, recognized neighborhood leaders, call for calm and peaceful protest. On Sunday morning, motorcyclists and other protesters gathered in the Plaza Bolivar in Armenia and made a tour of some municipalities, which caused road blockages in some sectors, especially in La Tebaida, Quimbaya, Montenegro, Circasia and Filandia along the Autopista del Café. In Armenia there was a caravan and some road closures…In Montenegro, the entrance to the town was blocked with barricades and burning tyres to prevent vehicular traffic moving from Armenia, …where the Armenia mayor’s office is located are guarded and under strict security measures by the authorities. For its part, Armenia’s government secretary Gloria Cecilia García reported that vandals infiltrated the student march and damaged lamps in the Plazoleta de la Quindianidad, or CAM, the police inspectorate and supermarkets in the sector. A patrolman was injured with a stone in the foot and a security guard from the Familias en Acción office was hit with a stick in the shoulder, fortunately nothing serious.”

See also “Colombia – present day to 2019”

1/5/21:

Colombia: mayor beaten, statue pulled down, roads and transport blocked, various bits of vandalism, clashes with riot cops in different parts of country

“Demonstrations continue this Saturday in several cities across the country as part of the fourth day of the national strike against the tax reform, as well as the commemoration of Labour Day. Despite the organisers’ assurances that this day’s demonstrations would take place virtually, in accordance with the restrictions imposed by the third peak of the pandemic, citizens took to the streets. This is how the demonstrations are going in Bogotá, Cali, Medellín and other cities in the country this May 1st: 8:30 p.m. The mayor’s office of Usaquén reports that in the midst of the protests in the sector, Jaime Vargas, mayor of Usaquén, and his team, were assaulted, insulted and beaten with stones. “We reject all types of violence and call for peaceful dialogue,” the organisation said. 8:15 p.m. Citizens report that in the midst of the disturbances near the Industrial University of Santander, the lights have been turned off and the city of Bucaramanga is militarised. 7:50 p.m. In the midst of the tense day of protests that is lived this Saturday still in several areas of the country, President Ivan Duque addressed the Colombians. He said he recognises those who are demonstrating peacefully, however, he issued a warning to those who have been vandalising and carrying out violent acts during the protests: “We are not going to allow de facto ways, the destruction of public and private property or the message of hate to have a place in our country. As a society and as a state, we have a responsibility to move the country forward together,” he said. … TransMilenio informs that … and in order to safeguard the safety of users and system employees, operations have been definitively cancelled for today. 7:25 p.m. In Santa Marta, a blockade continues on the Troncal del Caribe road, preventing the passage of vehicles to the department of La Guajira. Tyre burning and some vandalism are reported. 7:05 p.m. Transmilenio reports that today at 6:00 p.m., 42 buses between trunk and zone are affected, one of them burned and 3 stations were vandalized. Likewise, the entity points out that in the afternoon a fire was reported on a SITP zonal bus on Carrera 68 and Calle 3….7:00 p.m. At this hour in the capital of the country, there are disturbances in the street 145 with career Seventh. 6:25 p.m. Transmilenio reports that at this time there is no passage at any point, “the operation is cancelled on all the trunk lines of the system due to the lack of security guarantees for users,” says the entity….6:15 p.m. At this time there are clashes between demonstrators who obstructed the passage on Carrera 10 and Calle 13 and the Esmad [riot police]. 6:12 p.m. Heavy clashes are registered between the Esmad and the demonstrators in the centre of the city (Carrera 10 con calle 13) and in the north of the capital (Cedritos and Carrera 7 con calle 134). 6:10 p.m. The mayor’s office of Barranquilla reported that the episodes related to vandalism in the sector of the Circunvalar Avenue with the Cordialidad were controlled by police units, leaving as a result 13 people arrested during the demonstrations of this May 1 in the city. 6:00 p.m. Due to demonstrations at the time, the TransMilenio System is operating at 20% of its Troncal component. The entity informs that most stations are temporarily closed until the fleet is able to pass through and the safety of users and buses is guaranteed. The company also reports that the El Dorado and Portal Norte terminals have been cancelled. These are the routes that will not be able to operate due to blockades by demonstrators: Troncal Caracas, Troncal Suba, Troncal Calle 80, Troncal NQS Central, Troncal Américas, Troncal NQS South, Trunk Trunk Caracas Sur, Trunk Trunk Eje Ambiental, Troncal Carrera 10, Troncal Carrera 7….4:50 p.m. In Pasto, in the south of the country, a group of demonstrators demolish the statue of Antonio Nariño that was located in the main square. 4:40 p.m. In Bogotá there are confrontations between demonstrators and the security forces on Avenida de las Américas and Avenida Ciudad de Cali. 4:20 p.m. In the city of Bogotá, disturbances are reported on Carrera 7 and Calle 142. Demonstrators say that the Esmad prevented the march from passing, which was proceeding peacefully. 4:15 p.m. Clashes begin to be reported between the Esmad and the demonstrators in the Plaza de Bolivar in the centre of Bogota. 4:00 p.m. Citizens report through social networks peaceful demonstrations in various parts of the city of Medellin….3:30 p.m. The mayor of Santiago de Cali, Jorge Iván Ospina Gómez, analysed the public order situation in the city and deeply regretted the death of two people, in events that occurred during Friday’s protests and in the framework of the national strike. “A message of solidarity with their families and the most sincere condolences from the Mayor’s Office of Cali. It is a very painful and intolerant situation from any point of view,” he said. 3:20 p.m. Citizens report the intervention of the Esmad in the concentration of the march located in the Plaza de Bolivar, downtown Bogota. 3:00 p.m. The Medellín Metro announced that the service will be completely suspended from 6:00 p.m. Tomorrow, Sunday, May 2, it will open its usual schedule, said Esteban Restrepo, Medellín’s Secretary of Government. The decision, according to the official, was taken in order to avoid damage to the system in the midst of the protests….”

More here. See also “Colombia – present day to 2019”