OPINIONS
OPINIONS
The People and the Police
Ambassadors Research Staff
The fall of 2007 was marked with many confrontations between authorities and the civilian public across the world. While some of these regimes are considerably pro-American others are anti-American, this did not keep civilians and professionals from taking the streets to express their dismay with their governments. Some were demonstrating against constitutional amendments, others against the crack down on the judiciary, others against curbs on freedom of expression. What all these have in common is a desire for more democratic leadership, despite the varying definitions of what that means. Also, in much of these cases, the greater and larger the protests area, the more disproportionate the response from the police and military becomes. In this page, we share the photographs and brief glimpses into a few of these confrontations, many of which remain unresolved to this moment. These include protests against the human rights violations of the junta-led government in Rangoon, Burma, the emergency measures imposed by Musharraf in Pakistan and the suspension of the Supreme court, the closing down of a private television station in Venezuela and amendments to extend the limit on presidential terms, and anti-corruption revolts in Tbilisi, Georgia. As advocates for the inalienable rights of civilians in all societies and under all regimes, we showcase some of the most startling photos representing human rights violations and blatant police brutality against in all cases an unarmed civilian populace. These images express our condemnation of such inhumane reactions to the public's political will and hoping that 2008 brings a reasonable calm.
(photo Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images)
Plainclothes Pakistani officers attacking and arresting lawyers (dressed in black suits and ties) in Lahore who were demonstrating against the emergency measures imposed by President Musharraf which have attempted to suppress the country's independent judiciary (photo Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images)
Artist's impression of the Pakkoku protests in Burma and the regime's
reaction against the monks.
Standoff between a group of monks and the junta-loyal police/military officials as the prior try to make their way to Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon (AP).
In central Rangoon, Kenji Nagai, a
Japanese photographer for the AFP news agency, lying prostrate continues to take
photos of
escaping protesters as military police charge. Moments later, Nagai was shot and
killed (AFP).
Riot police officers advance toward anti-government protesters in downtown
Tbilisi, Wednesday Nov. 7, 2007, driving them from the
central part of the capital. Georgian security forces fired tear gas and water
cannons into a crowd of hundreds of anti-government protesters on Wednesday,
driving them from a central street in front of parliament and beating several
with truncheons (AP photos).
Thousands of protesters descended on the congress building in Caracas,
Venezuela and students held demonstrations on campus against President Chavez's
proposed constitutional amendments that would allow a head of state to run for
the office an unlimited number of times.
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