Posts Tagged ‘carabineros’

Victim’s Autopsy Report Casts Doubts On Police Self-Defence Claim

Sirens and tear gas filled the air near Metro (subway) Los Heroes in central Santiago Friday night as police and protestors clashed over the recent death of a young Mapuche during a confrontation with police in Region IX.

Protestors and bystanders alike sprint down Alameda, away from a stream of tear gas during Friday's Mapuche protest near Metro (subway) station Los Heroes. All photos by Kendal Montgomery, The Santiago Times

According to the autopsy, Jaime Mendoza Collío, 24, was shot in the back while trying to occupy a Region IX farm with 50 others who claimed ancestral ownership of the land. The autopsy results caused doubts of the initial police reports, which claimed that officer Patricio Jara Muñoz shot the victim in self-defense (ST, Aug. 14 ).

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Spanish Correspondent Lost Visions In His Eye After Attack By Mounted Police In 2008

The police officer responsible for the May 2008 attack on photojournalist Víctor Salas has been identified by the civilian investigators, prompting a renewed call for justice from the victim’s lawyer and supporters.

“This is a milestone in terms of Special Forces officers,” said attorney Alfredo Morgado, who is representing Salas. “In cases like this they often hide behind a helmet and a uniform, which does not allow them to be identified [in extreme cases], which leads to impunity. That should change.”

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So yesterday, in between bites of homemade Mexican food, I learned that there was going to be a protest that night, the latest in a series of public action sparked by the killing of a young Mapuche man by a police officer. The Mapuche are the biggest indigenous group in the country, and have been at odds with the government over mistreatment and a lack of legal protection, among other things.

Awesome, I thought. A protest! I’ve covered protests, because after all, I did go to school at UC Santa Cruz, right?

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