Hayley Serpa/Staff Writer
From the middle of 2019 up till now, people all over the world have risen up to protest abuses of power by the heads of state and the legislative bodies of their countries. This abuse of power usually manifests itself as police violence and brutality against citizens who are fighting for their rights. The most recent and still ongoing case is in Peru, where mass protests have formed in response to Congress’ decision to remove now ex-President Martin Vizcarra while in the middle of the country’s worst health crisis. The Peruvian political scene has reached a breaking point, much like it has in Nigeria with the SARS unit and in Hong Kong with the Chinese State. The policial suppression and brutality against the Peruvian protestors seems like the continuation of a new trend in forms of suppression by authorities, as hauntingly similar violent occurrences have transpired across the globe.
The violence against protestors by the Peruvian police has resulted in the injuries of many innocent civilians and the tragic deaths of two young protestors. Many journalists from both national and local media, as well as protestors themselves, have documented the violent actions taken by the uniformed forces against the retreating protestors. Some of these violent and suppressive actions were the launching of projectiles into crowds of protestors and the use of tear gas. Peru’s democracy has destabilized further as it undergoes its third president in a week, Francisco Sagasti.
These protesters are not pushing for the return of President Vizcarra, who lost his fiscal immunity and is now facing judicial processes for the Richard Swing case, but instead are fighting for the complete removal of corruption in their authoritative bodies including the legislature and the police. The government has taken actions similar to those of a suppressive police state and has brutally responded to protests. This has resulted in high levels of injuries and fatalities reminiscent of recent police-citizen altercations in Nigeria.
Much like Peru’s struggle against police brutality and corruption, many Nigerian police members and political personalities are involved in similar corrupt activities that have also led to police brutality crises within their borders. The SARS (Special Anti-Robbery Squad) is one of these notoriously corrupt police units known for their human-rights violations against the citizens of Nigeria. In response to the horrific actions taken by the SARS unit, many civilians have peacefully demonstrated in the streets of Lagos and other major cities using the popularized #EndSars hashtag.
Much like the protests in Peru, Nigerian police forces would violently attack the protestors, ultimately killing twelve and injuring many more this past October. The series of #EndSARS protests in Nigeria and the ongoing fight in Peru against the legislative coup, is much similar to the protests that have occurred in the United States for the #BlackLivesMatter movement.
The police brutality crisis is not only limited to the borders of specific countries with problems like corruption or racism, but seems to be a growing problem of the modern, twenty-first century
After the brutal killing of George Floyd in late May of this year by police officers, multitudes of young #BlackLivesMatter or #BLM protesters have risen up to denounce the racially motivated, excessive use of force by American police officers against black American citizens. A statistical study published last month confirmed that the rate of fatal police shootings of black Americans is extremely high in comparison to the black American population size. The movement against racism and police violence has continued throughout the year and many Miami locals would participate in #BLM protests in the Downtown Miami and Wynwood area.
Pictures from the Downtown Miami protests reveal how similar the gatherings are to those seen in Peru and Nigeria, with the use of masks and powerful protest signs by the masses. The police brutality crisis is not only limited to the borders of specific countries with problems like corruption or racism, but seems to be a growing problem of the modern, twenty-first century and a new suppressive tool used by governments, such as the Chinese State.
The Hong Kong protests would begin in the summer of 2019 after an extradition bill that would permit the People’s Republic of China to extradite Hong Kong citizens suspected of crimes to the Chinese mainland was introduced. The people of Hong Kong, which would be returned to China in 1997 after over 150 years as a British colony, did not consider themselves to be a part of the People’s Republic of China and are still to this day fighting for further democratization and separation from the Chinese State. Police responses were like those of the aforementioned police brutality crises and include the throwing of projectiles into crowds and the shooting of a protester by a Chinese police officer. The violence and brutality experienced by Hong Kong protesters has led them to demand the need to investigate police brutality within the system.
All these recent police brutality crises, in Peru, Nigeria, the U.S. and Hong Kong shows that not enough has been done to address the violent actions consistently taken by uniformed police officers against civilians in countries all over the world. These protests and the violent response by those in power, is not just limited to these countries, as Chile and other countries fight for the same underlying ideas. In the upcoming years, we must be sure to expect these abuses of authority and continue fighting against the usage of police brutality and violence to prevent further tragic crises like these.
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Photo by Martin Sanchez on Unsplash
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