Supporters and opponents of Chile’s proposal for a new constitution clashed this Sunday in central Santiago after two opposing marches converged in the final phase of a campaign where tensions are rising over a September 4 constitutional plebiscite.
Face to face
A cyclists’ march in support of Magna Carta reached Piazza d’Italia, the epicenter of protests since October 2019, and intersected with another march organized by people from the countryside who, on horseback and in carriages, expressed their opposition to the proposal.
At the capital’s central roundabout, both groups yelled at each other, threw stones at each other, and some riders even whipped cyclists.
According to a video broadcast by local TV channels, one of the horse-drawn carts ran over several cyclists while riding on a pro-Constitution march.
The president of the Komuna party, Marco Velarde, which is part of the ruling Broad Front, condemned the incident on social networks.
“This level of violence cannot increase in the last phase of the campaign,” he said on his Twitter account.
This is not the first confrontation
Saturday night in a public act for the option “I approve” new constitution in the coastal city of Valparaiso, an allegedly artistic intervention was carried out in which a man removed the flag from Chile someone else’s year.
This action was recorded and published on social media, which caused great controversy and rejection from the ruling party, the opposition, society at large and LGBTI organizations. The government indicated that they condemned this fact in the prosecutor’s office.
The events took place on the last weekend of the campaign before next Sunday’s plebiscite, in which 15 of the nearly 20 million residents took part. Chile they are called to a mandatory ballot to approve or not approve a proposal for a new constitution.
In case of text rejection current Magna Cartacompiled during the Pinochet dictatorship (1973-1990), but reformed dozens of times after the return to democracy.
(AFP)
Source: RPP
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