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7 minutes ago
Last update: 4 – October – 2020 18:49
A Chilean policeman throws a child off a bridge
After the publication of a video clip, which shows the brutal assault of a Chilean policeman who intentionally pushed a child from the top of a bridge during a demonstration in the capital Santiago. The police face a fierce campaign of criticism. This occurs about 3 weeks before the country voted in the referendum to change its constitution, which dates back to the era of dictator Augusto Pinochet, according to the British newspaper “The Guardian.”
On Friday night, Chilean National Police officers, known as “Carabineros”, used tear gas and high-pressure water sprayers to disperse protesters in Plaza Italia, where violence erupted amid a heavy police presence .
The videos show a 16-year-old as a police officer threw him from a bridge fence, falling into the concrete channel of the Mapucho River, where he lay motionless, face down in shallow water.
“As the protesters fled, we saw the moment when the officer (the boy) intercepted him and threw him over the bridge,” said Pavel Pavilik Jofer, who led a group of volunteers in the protests.
He added: “We managed to leave two of our group to help him, and after his condition stabilized, firefighters were able to pull him out of the river to take him to hospital.”
Speaking of the incident in a televised speech, General Enrique Monras, a police spokesman, did not rule out the responsibility of the force for what happened, but said he believed the boy “lost his balance and fell” during his detention.
He said the force had its own set of videos absolving him of responsibility, though he did not explain what the videos showed.
And local media reports indicated that the child’s condition is stable at the Santa María clinic, a short distance from the place.
And when the images began to circulate on social media, police commanders faced new pressure to take action on the perceived culture of brutality.
Opposition politicians called on General Mario Rosas, head of the Carabineros, to resign after a series of accusations of human rights violations.
There were also calls on social media for more protests over the weekend.
