Anniversary 18-O: Concentration in Plaza Baquedano and arson attack on two churches mark the day

Since October began, there are two dates that have been the concern of the authorities: the anniversary of the social outbreak and the plebiscite; and yesterday, October 18 It has already been crossed out in the Carabineros and La Moneda calendar.

A high concentration of protesters was expected, as well as excesses, and this was the case, with the most violent events of the day being the burning of two churches and the massive attack on a police station in Puente Alto. Until 6:00 p.m. yesterday, Carabineros counted more than 25 thousand people gathered in Plaza Baquedano, and a series of excesses in the surroundings of the so-called “ground zero”.

The first massive protest was staged by almost nine thousand cyclists, who started from Almagro Square, at 11:30, heading to Plaza Baquedano, the nerve center of the demonstrations, since October last year.

Half an hour later, that area was already beginning to receive large groups of people. Flags, street commerce and protests without major incidents, except for the new stripes that affected the statue of General Manuel Baquedano, It only lasted one day repaired, after it was painted red on Friday.

In addition, the statue was intervened by protesters, who climbed and assembled a giant eye that bordered the monument that the Army has already offered to transfer to a military station.

A question that began to arise among the protesters was Where is Carabineros? The question has been repeated since the protests on Friday, when the uniformed officers launched a new strategy: get off the massive radar of the protests and locate in more remote areas, to avoid confrontations with hooded men. The institution assures that it is the “first line” that seeks the clash with the police.

The instruction to withdraw and then detain in flagrante delicto was made clear by the more than 12 thousand troops who were distributed throughout the Metropolitan Region, who, in addition, received a visit on the ground yesterday from the general director of the institution, Mario Rozas. The police chief toured the police stations in the northwestern sector of Santiago throughout the morning, leaving at 10 am at the 28th Public Order Police Station, where the message was to convey support and encouragement.

In the streets, the day progressed without major incidents, until the clock struck 3.30 p.m. From then on, the acts of violence escalated as the hours passed.

The first serious event occurred at that time in the San Francisco de Borja Church. The property belongs to the Carabineros and had already been attacked on January 30 of this year. According to police reports, a group of hooded men entered to loot the place. Then, they set up a barricade in front of the religious compound, on Calle Carabineros de Chile with Ramón Corvalán, to end with the burning of part of the building. Last night, the temple was burned down again.

The Carabineros Church, since the protests began, has become a focus of attack. For this reason, the institution no longer keeps in that place all the elements that pay homage to the martyrs.

Carabineros reported that after the first incident there were detainees. The Centro Norte prosecutor, José Morales, went to the 19th Police Station and found that the only one arrested was an independent photographer who was developing his work there. After this, the investigator ordered the professional’s release.

Due to disorders outside the temple, four people were arrested, one of them a Second corporal of the Navy. The institution condemned the incident and indicated that “The regulations and institutional disciplinary measures will be applied.”

At the same time, the “ground zero” was also beginning to transform itself into a true pitched battle, starring, this time, by the brave bars of Colo Colo and Universidad de Chile. The White Claw and Those Below, respectively, thus breaking a “truce” agreed during the social outbreak. Bottle hits, stones and hand-to-hand confrontations were part of the incident, which lasted almost 40 minutes. According to data from the Central Post Office, 20 people arrived at the site with various injuries related to this massive fight.

Hours later, after 7:00 p.m., the most serious event would occur. Hooded men entered the Parroquia de la Asunción, located in Vicuña Mackenna # 69, and set it on fire. The religious enclosure, built in 1876, was burned almost in its entirety, including the collapse of the bell tower, damage to the front and the chapel where the masses are held.

The fall of the dome was followed by a group of hooded men who celebrated once the structure collapsed. The Prosecutor’s Office ordered proceedings.

At the end of the demonstration in Plaza Baquedano, looting occurred in premises in the center of the capital: supermarkets, multi-stores and pharmacies, among others, suffered the attacks of hooded men.

But not all the acts of violence occurred in Plaza Baquedano: Melipilla, San Bernardo and Puente Alto were also the scene of excesses.

One of these events occurred at the 20th Puente Alto Police Station, where at 6.15 pm, a group of 300 people stoned the police unit, threw Molotov cocktails and even a mob tried to enter the police unit, but were repelled by personnel from the PDI. A similar attack occurred in Melipilla, where 20 hooded men attacked the sub-police station in the sector with stones. At least five police precincts had been attacked in the capital and 22 carabineros had been transferred for injuries of varying degrees to the institutional hospital.

Another source of concern for the authorities was the Metro. At 6 p.m., a group of 100 people set up barricades at the exit of the Child Protection Station, in Puente Alto.

This situation led to some safeguards being taken. After 8:00 p.m., Metro reported the closure of 32 stations, some total and others partial, for security reasons, to prevent attacks on the transport service.