NOMADESC denounces police violence against people in city of Cali, Colombia

Video clip of media conference from Twitter.

On April 30 at 5 pm, the Peace Brigades International-Colombia Project tweeted: “Organizations including NOMADESC and dhColombia warn of excessive and excessive use of force by state agents against protesters in Cali.”

That followed this tweet from NOMADESC that stated: “We denounce military, excessive and provocative treatment that the Colombian state in the Head of President Duque is giving to the demonstration in the City of Cali.”

Later that evening, NOMADESC also tweeted: “SOS. The Public Force is firing at the protesters in the Calipso neighborhood, east of the city of Cali. At this time, there are reported injuries and 4 people killed with a firearm.”

Now, Contagio Radio reports: “At a press conference of various social and HRD organizations in Cali, they report that the number of people killed at the hands of the national police could rise to fourteen and that it follows the repression at various points in the city.”

That news report continues: “At a press conference [held on Friday night] of HRD organizations including NOMADESC, they confirmed that there are a number of actions [being committed] outside the law by the public force.”

As noted by Contagio Radio, those include:

– “The detention of more than 150 people at the Colosseum of the Americas and the refusal by the police to hand over information about detainees, to whom they remove all belongings and cell phones to prevent communication.”

– “There could be at least 14 people killed as claimed by people in the Calypso and Poblado neighborhoods, there would be 3 people missing and there is still no record of the total number of injured, but it could exceed one hundred people.”

– “The allegation of sexual assault against a woman who was in the demonstrations. According to HRD organizations, an ESMAD agent would have been responsible for the aggression.”

– “By 9:30 p.m. on April 30th both the police and the army are arriving in the fifth street sector where hundreds of people remain at the demonstration.”

The Social Movement of Women of Cali has also stated: “We denounce that on April 28, 29 and 30, the Cali police have deliberately used force. The Cali police have fired indiscriminately against the defenseless population, they have murdered minors, adolescents, and young people. Hundreds of women and men are wounded, confused and injured, several of them being incapacitated for life due to attacks directed at their integrity.”

On November 23, 2019, following the killing of 18-year-old Dilan Cruz by the ESMAD riot police at a national strike at that time, PBI-Colombia commented: “Social and peaceful protest is a human right, above all, disproportionate repressions cannot be justified against the civilian population, we ask for guarantees and respect for life.”