Riot Control Officers Battling With Protesters Over Road to Volcan
A group of indigenous who work on horticultural plantations and coffee farms faced off this Monday afternoon with crowd control units of the National Police in the village of Volcan, Bugaba district, Chiriquí. The Indians, who have been protesting since Tuesday, 31 January 2012 against the mining law, had blocked the entrance to Volcan to vehicular traffic. Clashes between the riot control police officers and the protesters started at 3:25 pm this afternoon, when the police arrived to reopen the road by force, and the Indians battled them by throwing rocks and sticks. They raised white flags and fled into the community. The road has not yet been reopened, and the police are firing tear gas. On of the riot control officers has been wounded. At 4 pm, the Indians had pushed the riot control officers back, and they still have the road closed. (Estrella)
