Protests in Cali were massive, but the city did not escape the action of the vandals

A mostly peaceful day, which in the end was marred by the actions of some vandals, was the one that was experienced in Cali during the protest marches this Monday.

The city was the scene of two large mobilizations, one in the morning and another in the afternoon, in which workers’ centrals, social organizations and ordinary citizens voiced their protest against different problems in the country and demanded actions from the Government. to fix them.

The protesters spoke out especially against the case of police abuse that led to the death of citizen Javier Ordóñez last week in Bogotá. They also questioned different economic measures adopted by the National Government in the framework of the Covid-19 pandemic, among them the announcement of a millionaire credit quota for the Avianca airline, and rejected the wave of massacres that has shaken to the country in recent weeks.

The day began in the morning with a large caravan of vehicles and motorcycles that departed from the Paso del Comercio, traveled a wide area of ​​the east, center and north of the city and concluded at around 3:00 pm in front of the headquarters of the Ministry of Job.

At about 6:30 pm a second march, this one with a large participation of students, left the Comfandi El Prado sector towards the Simón Bolívar Highway, in search of the popular Puerto Rellena sector.

Most of the protesters complied with the slogan of holding a peaceful protest, as the organizers of the march had previously proposed, but along the way there were outbreaks of vandalism against MÍO stations and other urban furniture equipment.

The situation became tense when, at the end of the march, some vandals tried to attack the CAI of the Police of the Puerto Rellena sector, a fact that forced the intervention of units of the National Police to prevent the property from being destroyed.

The vandals destroyed a photo camera and caused damage to some commercial premises, in addition to creating a climate of tension in the neighborhoods surrounding the sector.

However, the authorities managed to maintain control of the situation and the demonstration ended after 10 pm.

Guillermo Londoño, Undersecretary of Security of Cali, delivered a final balance and said that there is considerable damage in several MÍO stations. The most affected was that of Villa Nueva, in the east of the city.

A photo camera was also destroyed in the Puerto Rellena sector where there was an attempt to vandalize the Police CAI that was guarded by members of the Mobile Anti-riot Squad, Esmad.

“The balance is positive because in most of the activities that began in the morning there was tranquility and the established protocols were complied with. In the afternoon, in the Puerto Rellena sector there were vandalism: they damaged a MÍO station and tried to damage the CAI of the Police “, detailed.

Also read: This is how the caravan ended in Cali for the national day of protests

El País followed the development of the afternoon march and made a live broadcast during the tour. These are the images:

In addition, at approximately 9:00 pm there were clashes between the Public Force and some protesters in front of the headquarters of the Police Sijín.

Videos show that the same participants in the mobilization intervened to stop the confrontation.

Trade unions, social organizations, opposition parties, among others, participated in the caravan held in Cali in the framework of the protests called throughout the country on September 21. This caravan passed without disturbances of public order.

Video: The Country

According to Wilson Saenz, president of the CUT del Valle, the mobilization was a success due to the attendance and good behavior of the participants.

However, a large number of Caleños spoke out through social networks rejecting the vandalism that marred the day of protest.