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Chilean
protesters in street battles with police
More
than 100,000 join demonstrations as students seize 30 polling
stations to be used for presidential vote on Sunday
17
June, 2013
Hooded
protesters have vandalised shops and fought running street battles
with riot police in Chile's capital after more than 100,000 joined
mostly peaceful demonstrations across the country to demand education
reform.
The
violence began early on Wednesday when masked youths attacked a
police station and left burning tyres at road junctions hours before
thousands of university and secondary school students marched through
central Santiago.
While
riot police battled a flurry of rocks and molotov cocktails, students
seized an estimated 30 locations scheduled to be official voting
sites for Sunday's presidential primary vote.
The
president, Sebastián Piñera, warned the students that squads of
riot police were prepared for massive raids if the students refused
to peacefully surrender the voting areas. "We are not going to
let a minority, jumping over the law, pretend to usurp the 13 million
Chilean citizens who have a democratic right to participate [in
elections]," he said.
"They
are not students, they are criminals and extremists," the
interior and security minister, Andrés Chadwick, said. "They
have acted in a co-ordinated and planned way to provoke these acts of
violence."
Police
arrested 102 people and four officers were injured.
The
students were led by Moisés Paredes, a high school leader who held a
press conference suggesting the government find an alternative
location for their elections. The face-off between the billionaire
businessman turned president and teenage student shocked many older
Chileans who wondered aloud who was in control.
"We
are talking about underage children who by law are not able to vote
nor buy a pack of cigarettes. Children who need their parents'
permission to leave the country … who can't by law even drive a
car," wrote Teresa Marinovic, in the influential online
newspaper El Mostrador.
The
rejection of Piñera and elections in general is part of a broad
attack on politics as usual. As in neighbouring Brazil, Chileans of
all ages have joined the protests, which are driven by a range of
issues. In Chile, marchers have demanded a wider redistribution of
Chile's copper wealth, a reform of the educational system, which
would put the state back in control of mostly privatised public
universities, tax increases for the rich, and the legalisation of
marijuana.
While
protests are hardly new in Chile, where the 1980s were notable for
massive street uprisings against the military government of Augusto
Pinochet, the current protests are more diverse.
Much
of the energy comes from the ranks of public schoolchildren aged
14-17. Though not old enough to order a beer, they are connected by
Facebook and able to marshal massive marches and flashmobs in the
hundreds when a single friend is arrested and held by Carabineros de
Chile, the national police force. Instead of football or
skateboarding, teenagers often gather after school in public parks to
draft declarations and manifestos.
In
the hours before the national march, students attacked and briefly
occupied the ministry of education. Another group protested outside
Codelco, the state-run copper mining company, with signs reading
"Copper for Education" in reference to Chile's massive
revenue from copper exports and student demands for free university
education for all
Turkey
protests: hundreds set up barricades in Ankara
Main
road is blocked in working-class district of Dikmen as small core of
protesters continue daily demonstrations
27
June, 2013
Hundreds
of protesters have taken to the streets in a residential area of the
Turkish capital, setting up barricades and lighting small bonfires.
Weeks
of often violent anti-government protests have mostly died out in
Istanbul and the centre of the capital, Ankara, but daily
demonstrations have continued in its recently developed working-class
Dikmen district.
The
protesters, numbering no more than 1,000, blocked Dikmen's main road
with makeshift barricades and started small fires late on Wednesday,
some chanting anti-government slogans.
Riot
police and water cannon trucks initially kept their distance but
moved in to disperse the protesters in the early hours, footage from
the anti-government channel Halk TV showed.
The
images showed police firing at least two rounds of teargas and
detaining at least one protester.
Several
thousand people had marched through the neighbourhood the previous
night in protest at the release pending trial of a policeman accused
of shooting and killing a protester this month. Police fired teargas
and water cannon to disperse them.
The
weeks of protests have highlighted divisions in Turkish society,
including between religious conservatives who form the bedrock of
support for the prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and more
liberal Turks.
Four
people were killed in the broader unrest, including one policeman,
and about 7,500 wounded with injuries ranging from lacerations to
breathing difficulties from teargas inhalation, according to the
Turkish Medical Association.
A
report by the children's rights group Gündem Çocuk said at least
294 people under the age of 18 had been detained between 28 May and
25 June in relation to the unrest. It said some had been exposed to
teargas, pressurised water and percussion bombs and had been beaten
by police with batons.
Turkey
has come under international criticism for its handling of the
protests, which began in late May as peaceful resistance to plans to
redevelop an Istanbul park.
The
EU rebuked Turkey this week, postponing a new round of membership
talks for at least four months.
Erdoğan
has held a series of mass rallies across the country since the
trouble started, dismissing the protesters as pawns of Turkey's
enemies and calling on his supporters to back his party in municipal
elections in March.
Egypt
braced for protests as Mursi stands ground
Egypt
faces a showdown in the streets after President Mohamed Mursi failed,
in an address to the nation, to satisfy the demands of opponents who
want to force him from office.
27
June, 2013
Days
of brawling between his Islamist supporters and their rivals have
already left several dead and scores injured and the camps now plan
mass rallies, raising the risk of bigger clashes that the army warns
could prompt it to take command again.
On
Friday, Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood and their allies will gather in
Cairo, as will some opposition groups. On Sunday, the opposition
hopes millions will heed the call, a year to the day since Mursi
became Egypt's first freely elected leader.
"Dr.
Mohamed Mursi's speech of yesterday only made us more determined in
our call for an early presidential vote in order to achieve the goals
of the revolution," the liberal opposition coalition said after
its leaders met to consider a response.
"We
are confident the Egyptian masses will go out in their millions in
Egypt's squares and streets on June 30 to confirm their will to get
the January 25 revolution back on track."
With
the start of the weekend, people began to gather in Cairo's Tahrir
Square, site of the uprising of January 25, 2011, and at venues in
other towns. The atmosphere was largely festive but there were
widespread fears of trouble in the days ahead.
It
is hard to gauge how many may turn out but much of the population,
even those sympathetic to Islamic ideas, are deeply frustrated by
economic slump and many blame the government.
The
army, which helped protesters topple Hosni Mubarak in 2011 and is on
alert across the country guarding key locations, says it will act if
politicians cannot reach consensus. The United States, which
continues to fund the military as it did under Mubarak, has urged
Egypt's leaders to pull together.
In
a late-night marathon speech, Mursi called opponents "enemies"
and "saboteurs" loyal to the ousted dictator, whose
"corruption" had thwarted him and undermined the economy,
though he conceded he had made some mistakes and promised reforms.
He
also offered talks on "national reconciliation" and changes
to a controversial new constitution to end the polarization and
paralysis that he said threatened democracy.
Opponents
dismissed that as nothing new. Mursi and his allies complain that
their opponents, defeated by the highly mobilized Islamist groups in
a series of elections last year, are bad losers who have repeatedly
snubbed offers to cooperate.
They
in turn say Mursi makes such proposals in bad faith, accusing him of
usurping the revolution by entrenching Brotherhood control of the
state and "Islamising" society to the detriment of more
secular Egyptians and religious minorities.
"Our
demand was early presidential elections and since that was not
addressed anywhere in the speech then our response will be on the
streets on June 30," said Mahmoud Badr, the young journalist
behind a petition which has garnered millions of signatures calling
on Mursi to quit. "I hope he'll be watching."
Islamists
say the opposition tactics amount to a "coup" and many who
were jailed under Mubarak fear a return of army rule.
INTERNATIONAL
CONCERN
Warning
"violence will only lead to violence", Mursi urged his
opponents to focus on parliamentary elections, which may be held this
year, rather than on "undemocratic" demands to overturn his
election on the streets: "I say to the opposition, the road to
change is clear," he said. "Our hands are extended."
Instability
in the most populous Arab nation could send shocks well beyond its
borders. Signatory to a key, U.S.-backed peace treaty with Israel,
Egypt also controls the Suez Canal, a vital link in global transport
networks between Europe and Asia.
"Egypt
is historically a critical country to this region," U.S.
Secretary of State John Kerry, who is on a tour of the Middle East,
said on Wednesday.
"Our
hopes are that all parties ... the demonstration that takes place on
Friday or the demonstration that takes place on Sunday, will all
engage in peaceful, free expression," he said.
With
the government short of cash and seeking funding from allies and the
IMF, Kerry said Egypt should curb unrest in order to attract
investment and restore vital tourism income. The U.S. ambassador in
Cairo has angered opposition activists by saying explicitly that
their protests risked being counter-productive.
Egypt's
financial markets have suffered. Government debt costs have risen,
and the stock market and pound have fallen.
"Financial
markets in Egypt have been hit by a triple whammy of rising political
tensions, growing concerns over the fiscal position and the continued
deadlock in negotiations with the IMF," said London-based
analysts Capital Economics.
"The
markets are now pricing in a 50 percent chance of a government
default within the next five years."
The
secretary general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation,
Cairo-born Turkish academic Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, raised the alarm
about the fragility of the democracy Egyptians secured in the Arab
Spring uprising two and a half years ago:
"I
hope ... polarization does not turn into clashes," he told
Egypt's state news agency MENA. "Because if that happens, then
it means that there will not be a democratic solution."
The
Muslim Brotherhood's insistence on its right to rule as it sees fit
because of its electoral mandate has drawn comparison with the way
Turkey's Islamist-rooted government dismissed street protesters
earlier this month. In both cases, critics say large minority voices
have been ignored.
THREATS
Mursi
threatened legal action against several named senior figures and
raised the possibility of using military law codes in some cases. He
said some judges and civil servants were obstructing him, and accused
liberal media owners of bias.
Hours
after he publicly accused one TV channel owner of tax evasion, the
businessman Mohamed al-Amin found he was under investigation and
barred from leaving the country, prompting his lawyer to tell
Reuters: "This is dictatorship." Amin's channel notably
airs satire modeled on that of U.S. comic Jon Stewart.
Those
attacks on critics, as well as flashes of humor in the speech, showed
a more animated Mursi than Egyptians have seen since he emerged from
obscurity as a last-minute stand-in to carry the Brotherhood's banner
in the presidential election. It may play well with his core
supporters, if not opponents.
With
protesters planning to gather around the presidential palace in a
Cairo suburb, the head of the Republican Guard was quoted by the
state news agency saying his men would not be deployed outside the
walls of the compound and so would not confront them - unless "there
is an attempt to storm the gates".
On
Tahrir Square, people pitched tents and were preparing to
demonstrate. As Mursi spoke on television overnight, Ayman Anwar, a
55-year-old computer engineer, watched with disdain.
"I
didn't come out tonight to listen," he said. "I came out
because I'm angry. No one could have imagined that this would happen
to Egypt. We've replaced one dictator with another."
Egyptian
troops move to bases near cities ahead of protests
27
June, 2013
Troop
reinforcements and armour have been brought to army bases near cities
ahead of protests this weekend aimed at forcing the Islamist
president out, security officials have said.
Clashes
between supporters and opponents of President Mohammed Morsi erupted,
killing at least one person in the coastal city of Mansoura.
The
troop movements accompanied speculation over the army's role in the
crisis leading up to Sunday's protests. Islamists accuse activists of
paving the way for a coup, a charge that the opposition vehemently
denies.
Brazilian
riot police caught firing CATAPULTS at crowds near World Cup stadium
in latest round of violent clashes with anti-government protesters
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=brazil+police+catapaults&oq=brazil+police+catapaults&gs_l=youtube.3...874.5918.0.6760.24.23.0.1.1.0.234.2286.15j1j7.23.0...0.0...1ac.1.11.youtube.SXzoDfIAN9U
27
June, 2013
Brazilian
riot police have been caught firing catapults at crowds as they
clashed with anti-government protesters near a World Cup stadium.
Thousands
of demonstrators trying to march on the Mineirao Stadium in Belo
Horizonte were met by tear gas and rubber bullets.
The
protesters, who have been angered by the billions spent in World Cup
preparations, are said to have picked up tear gas canisters and
lobbed them back at police, along with a shower of rocks.
A
dense fog of the acrid gas enveloped the mass of protesters, who were
about a mile away from the stadium where Brazil were playing Uruguay
in a semi-final match of the warm-up tournament for next year's World
Cup.
Police
set up a one-mile perimeter around the stadium, normal procedure for
international tournaments. Mounted police and riot units maintained
another security line about half a mile from the stadium.
Thousands
of demonstrators trying to march on the site were met by tear gas and
rubber bullets
Demonstrators
run as riot police fire tear gas during clashes at a protest on the
streets of Belo Horizonte. Tens of thousands of Brazilians have taken
to the streets this month in the biggest protests in 20 years
The
riots have been fuelled by an array of grievances ranging from poor
public services to the high cost of World Cup soccer stadiums and
corruption
By
the time last night's Confederations Cup match ended in a 2-1 Brazil
victory, most of the protesters had dispersed. In another area of
Belo Horizonte, a group of masked young men shattered the windows of
car showroom and set the shop on fire.
About
50,000 protesters had earlier massed in a central plaza in Belo
Horizonte.
'We
don't need the World Cup,' said Leonardo Fabri, a 19-year-old
protester. 'We need education, we need better health services, a more
humane police.'
It
is the latest protest to turn violent as Latin America's biggest
country has been hit by nationwide protests since June 17.
Elsewhere
in Brazil the situation was mostly calm, in part because Brazilian
politicians were taking action to meet protesters' demands.
A
dense fog of the acrid gas enveloped the mass of protesters, who were
about a mile away from the stadium where Brazil were playing Uruguay
in a semi-final match of the warm-up tournament for next year's World
Cup
The
senate yesterday approved legislation to ratchet up penalties for
those found guilty of corruption and would take away the ability for
a pardon, amnesty or bail for those convicted.
The
measure must be approved by the lower house before it is signed into
law.
The
wave of protests that hit Brazil began as opposition to transport
fare rises, then expanded to a list of causes including anger at high
taxes, poor services and high World Cup spending, before coalescing
around the issue of rampant government corruption.
It
has become the largest eruption of public demonstrations Brazil has
seen in two decades.
'This
movement scored a big victory by the killing' of that legislation,
said Leila Marques, a 19-year-old protester in Brasilia.
Bulgarian
protesters pelt lawmakers with tomatoes, eggs
Bulgarian
protesters pelted lawmakers with tomatoes and eggs and chanted
"Mafia!" and "Resign!" on Wednesday in a sign of
mounting frustration over the new Socialist-led government's refusal
to quit over a security scandal.
26
June, 2013
Thousands
of mostly younger Bulgarians have been staging protest rallies for
more than a week demanding the cabinet step down over its bungled bid
to impose a media mogul as head of national security, a highly
sensitive post, without any debate.
Bowing
to the protesters, parliament canceled Delyan Peevski's appointment
and Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski has apologized, but refuses to
resign, saying this would destabilize the European Union's poorest
member state and harm its economy.
The
protests, which are fueled by impatience over the politicians'
failure to tackle graft and organized crime, had been peaceful and
good-natured until Wednesday's gathering, which was organized via
social network sites.
Bulgarian
television showed some protesters hurling food at a group of
lawmakers entering the parliament building. A deputy from the ethnic
Turkish MRF party, junior partner in the ruling coalition, was
slapped with a newspaper and doused with water.
The
media mogul Peevski is a former MRF lawmaker. Bulgarian media says
Peevski, 32, stands behind a powerful network of newspapers and
television channels owned by his mother.
The
abortive bid to appoint Peevski, who has no experience of security
issues, is viewed by the protesters as symbolic of the murky ties
between Bulgarian politicians and businessmen.
As
well as the government's resignation, the protesters are also
demanding a raft of reforms they hope will cut corruption and bring
greater transparency to Bulgarian public life.
VOTE
CANCELED
Lawmakers
had been due to approve on Wednesday banker Daniela Bobeva as deputy
prime minister but not enough turned up for the vote to go ahead,
adding to a sense of political drift in a country with pressing
economic and social problems.
Worryingly
for Oresharski, deputies from a small nationalist party whose passive
support his government needs to stay in power failed to show up in
parliament on Wednesday.
The
Socialists and the MRF, who placed second and third respectively in
May's snap election, formed their coalition after the biggest party,
the center-right GERB, failed to find allies to form its own
government.
Street
protests over corruption and high energy prices toppled the previous
GERB government in February.
A
Bulgarian poet and former right-wing deputy, Edvin Sugarev, said on
Wednesday he was going on hunger strike in protest against the
Socialist-led coalition.
"Thousands
of Bulgarians have demanded your resignation and you keep pretending
you do not hear their voices below the windows of your office, that
you do not understand their demands and that you cannot feel their
insistence," he said in an open letter to the prime minister.
Canada: National
protests will support Hamilton Enbridge activists
Protestors
from across the country will take to the streets in nearly a dozen
cities tomorrow in support of activists who took over an Enbridge
Inc. pumping station in Hamilton last week
CBC,
24
June, 2013
The
action, titled “Swamp Line 9,” is in protest of the Line 9
pipeline that runs from Montreal to Sarnia. Enbridge is seeking to
reverse the direction of the pipeline in a bid to send tar sands oil
from Alberta to the east coast. The protesters moved on to the North
Westover site on June 20.
“It’s
important to show people in the struggle out east that there are
people in Alberta that are happy with what they’re doing,” said
Chelsea Flook.
Flook’s
Sierra Club Prairie Chapter will be hosting a local solidarity action
in Edmonton.
Related:
Enbridge protesters hope to be in 'for the long haul' at Hamilton
site
“At
the same time, it’s locally important to show Edmontonians that
people are united across Canada against tar sands expansions and they
are raising their voices,” she added.
The
National Energy Board has already approved the first leg of the
project, with public hearings on the second leg scheduled for the
fall. Enbridge has already began construction on the project.
“These
communities along the route are giving voice to their concerns. They
have a right to say no,” said Maryam Adrangi, spokesperson for the
Rising Tide’s Vancouver chapter.
“They’re
saying that we care about the land we live on, the water we drink and
the air we breathe — they’re incredibly legitimate concerns,”
Adrangi said.
Line
9 crosses several major rivers that drain into Lake Ontario and the
St. Lawrence River as well as Spencer Creek, Hamilton’s largest
watershed.
Protestors
say that the drinking water of millions of people would be at risk in
the event of an oil spill.
The
protest is part of “Sovereignty Summer,” a series of protest
actions promoting Indigenous rights and environmental protection led
by Idle No More and Defenders of the Land.
Enbridge
told CBC Hamilton last week that the company is willing to listen to
concerns.
"We
are willing to speak with these individuals about their concerns,"
said Ken Hall, a senior advisor for community relations. "I'm
sure we can try to resolve this in due course"
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