The Javier Ordóñez protests refers to a series of protests and riots in

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

. The protests started in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

, the country's capital, following the torture and murder of Javier Ordóñez by police officers while in custody on 9 September 2020. The unrest then spread to many cities throughout Colombia. As a results of the protests, 13 people died and over 400 were injured. A UN-backed report categorized the deaths of 11 of the victims as a massacre by the Colombian police. In response to the protests, Defense Minister

Carlos Holmes Trujillo Carlos Holmes Trujillo García (23 September 1951 – 26 January 2021) was a Colombian dynasty politician, diplomat, scholar, and attorney who served as minister of defense, foreign affairs, interior, and education. He also served as the mayor ...

announced a disciplinary hearing for the officers involved in Ordóñez's death and said, "the National Police ask for forgiveness."

Police killing of Javier Ordóñez

Protests erupted in response to the police killing of Javier Humberto Ordóñez, a 46-year-old Colombian father of two in the neighborhood of

Engativá Engativá is the 10th locality of Bogotá. It is located in the west of the city. This district is mostly inhabited by lower middle and working class residents. Etymology Engativá is either derived from ''Ingativá''; ''cacique'' Inga; "Land ...

in Bogotá. In a video of the incident which went viral on social media, Ordóñez could be seen "face down on the ground as two officers kneel on him and repeatedly use their stun guns on him." Ordóñez could be heard saying "enough please, enough, no more, please" and "I am choking." Witnesses to the incident told police to stop repeatedly. Ordóñez was first transported to a local police station. A friend of his, Juan David Uribe arrived at the station to ask for him and stated, "when I arrived, my friend was practically dead, he was not moving. So I began to yell at police and told them, 'please help him, let's take him to the hospital'." Ordóñez was then transported to a local hospital, where he died shortly after. A family member reported that he had been tasered 12 times and stated "they told us that a person can endure more or less four." Local police attempted to justify the incident by saying that he had to be subdued. The video initiated thousands of protesters out to the streets. At least seven people died in the demonstrations and police reportedly took 70 people into custody. 248 people were injured, including 100 police. 5 of the people killed were shot. 58 people received gunshot wounds.

Claudia López Claudia Nayibe López Hernández (born 9 March 1970) is a Colombian politician. She was a Senator of the Republic of Colombia and was the vice-presidential candidate in the 2018 presidential election for the Green Alliance party. In October ...

, mayor of Bogotá, stated that "no one had ordered police to shoot at protesters" even though she admitted that this is what ended up happening. A BBC report stated that "there have been 137 complaints of police brutality in Bogotá this year" and that in November 2019 "tens of thousands of people took to the streets in memory of Dilan Cruz, a student who died after being hit by a projectile fired by riot police during an anti-government protest." Protests also occurred in

Soacha Soacha is an autonomous municipality of the department of Cundinamarca in Colombia, and part of the Metropolitan Area of Bogotá. It has an important industrial zone and is home to mostly working-class families. Soacha borders Bojacá and Mosq ...

Medellín Medellín ( ; or ), officially the Special District of Science, Technology and Innovation of Medellín (), is the List of cities in Colombia, second-largest city in Colombia after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia Departme ...

, and Pereira. The death of Ordóñez and the subsequent protests have been compared to the

murder of George Floyd On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black American man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old White police officer. Floyd had been arrested after a store clerk reported that he made a purchase using a c ...

and the subsequent

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests, riots, and demonstrations against police brutality that began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020. The protests and civil unrest began in Minneapolis as Reactions to the mu ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Protests

On September 9, 2020, various civil and political sectors in

called for peaceful demonstrations in response to the murder of Javier Ordóñez and the multiple cases of police abuse that preceded him. In relation to these events, demonstrations were also called in capital cities such as

Barranquilla Barranquilla () is the capital district of the Atlántico department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and third port in the Caribbean region of Colombia, Caribbean coast region; as of 2018, it had a popul ...

Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,280,522 residents estimate by National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE in 2023. The city span ...

Cúcuta Cúcuta (), officially San José de Cúcuta, is a Colombian municipality, capital of the department of Norte de Santander and nucleus of the Metropolitan Area of Cúcuta. The city is located in the homonymous valley, at the foot of the East ...

, among others. These peaceful demonstrations were accompanied by acts of vandalism that provoked the response of the National Police, questioned for, allegedly, having caused, throughout the country, injuries and the death of both protesters and passers-by. The presence of the

Mobile Anti-Disturbance Squadron Mobile Anti-Disturbances Squadron or Escuadrón Móvil Antidisturbios (ESMAD) in Spanish is a Colombian National Police riot control unit specialized on preventing and/or controlling public disturbances and riots, as well controlling vandalism i ...

(ESMAD), a special unit of the Directorate of Citizen Security (DISEC) of the

National Police of Colombia The National Police of Colombia () is the law enforcement agency#natpol, national police force of the Republic of Colombia. Although the National Police is not part of the Military Forces of Colombia (Army, Navy, and Aerospace Force), it const ...

, has been notable for its participation in these violent events. As the hours progress, the National Police opens fire, causing the death of more than 13 people in different parts of the city and leaving more than 54 wounded with firearms, in addition to 400 injured due to blows with blunt elements, kicks and fists.

References

{{reflist 2020 protests 2020 in Colombia Massacres in Colombia Protests in Colombia September 2020 in Colombia Protests against police brutality Police brutality in the 2020s 21st-century mass murder in Colombia Police brutality in South America Massacres in 2020 Massacres of protesters in South America Political repression in Colombia

Police killing of Javier Ordóñez

Protests

See also

References