Death of Attorney by Police in Colombia Sparks Protests Leaving at Least Seven Dead

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The death of Javier Ordóñez, a 43-year-old attorney, who was subjected to ceaseless electric shocks with a taser-type gun while in police custody on a street in Bogotá in the early hours of Wednesday, rekindled the debate over the excessive use of force and brutality by the Colombian police, and sparked protests against police violence, leaving at least seven dead.

The mayor of the capital, Claudia López, pledged to work together with the control bodies to seek a reform that will stop police abuse incidents, which have inflamed the public debate.

The footage of the moment when two police officers tased attorney Javier Ordóñez, father of two, in the district of Engativá, northwest Bogotá, flooded social media and sparked turmoil in the country. In the video, the officers kneel on top of the detained man in an event that recalls the death of African-American George Floyd in May.

For over two minutes, several people recorded the scene, and Ordóñez, shirtless, begged them to stop. “I’m choking”, he manages to say, amidst the electric shocks. “He’s begging, we are recording,” witnesses alert the police, also asking them to release the man. “Why do you keep attacking him if he has just begged?” the residents ask, without getting an answer until two more officers arrive.

The police had been called in because of an “alleged fight”, and when they arrived at the scene they found eight people arguing, drunk, according to Colonel Alexander Amaya’s account.

“It was a matter of deterring these people, but they became aggressive with the police. The police had to control them, and one of these people was taken to the CAI [police district]. At this time, one of them was physically unwell and was immediately rushed to the nearest medical center. Unfortunately, he reached the facility with no vital signs,” said the chief of police early Thursday morning.

According to testimonies of Ordóñez’s friends, reported in the media, one of the officers told him “You can’t save yourself from this one,” while he told them to fine him before the attack began – alcohol consumption is banned in Colombia because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The event sparked a string of clashes between the population and the police forces in the Colombian capital. Shouting “murderers,” the demonstrators protested outside the CAI where the attorney was taken. Dumpsters were set on fire and motorcycles and cars destroyed. The police retaliated with stun bombs and tear gas. The protests then spread to other parts of Bogotá. Several police stations were attacked and parts of the city fell into chaos for a few hours. In addition to the dead, at least 20 other people were injured.

“Unacceptable”

In her first reactions, Mayor Claudia López of the progressive Green Alliance party offered legal assistance to the victim’s relatives and demanded an exemplary punishment of those directly responsible, in addition to “a structural reform that prevents and punishes police abuse”.

The City Hall had already denounced and condemned the abuses, however, the police had not taken any serious measures, thus the Municipal Executive will press for these changes together with the Attorney General’s Office and the People’s Ombudsman’s Office. “It’s not a matter of a few rotten apples among the healthy. Life is sacred,” said López, anticipating a common argument in Colombia when it comes to inappropriate behavior by public agents. “Police abuse is unacceptable,” emphasized the Mayor.

Waiting for the autopsy, which could offer new explanations about the occurrence, the case was prioritized by the Prosecutor’s Office. Minister of Defense Carlos Holmes Trujillo, also declared that he “rejects and condemns any act of a member of the Police that involves violations of the law or lack of knowledge of internal regulations”. He stressed that both officers are now under administrative and criminal investigation and that the institution intends to fully cooperate with the appropriate authorities.

Abuse of power

The excessive use of force has inflamed public debate since the wave of protests against the government of Iván Duque that shook the country late last year. During those demonstrations, a shooting by the controversial Anti-riot Squad (Esmad) killed a young demonstrator, Dilan Cruz, who became a symbol of social mobilization during a peaceful protest in downtown Bogotá.

“We will not allow, in any way, the abuse of power by any authority against this legitimate popular expression,” promised the Mayor in her inauguration speech on January 1st. Although social protests have largely died out because of the pandemic, reports of minor instances of police abuse – until now with no fatalities – have abounded during the last semester, with different degrees of containment measures in place because of the health crisis.

Similarly to what occurred with the Armed Forces, involved in a variety of scandals ranging from illegal interceptions to rapes of indigenous girls, the image of the police has been declining in opinion surveys. In the most recent survey by Gallup, the people’s positive perception of the institution plummeted to only 39 percent against 57 percent who perceive it negatively. “Something is not working in the training of the military and the national police,” Carlos Negret, the then Public Defender, said in July.

Source: El País