Protesters continued the Panamerican blockade for a 5th day, with clashes escalating and later ending in the murder of an indigenous youth by police in Ica. Interim President Francisco Sagasti, inaugurated November 15th, condemned the killing and called it a tragedy, but did not dole out a punishment for those responsible as farmers continued to hold their ground.
Protesters at Salvador Allende Avenue in Antofagasta burned barricades and raised banners to demand the release of all imprisoned protesters of Chile’s social uprising and the abolition of Carabineros, the country’s national police force.
Roughly 25 protesters in Thessaloniki gathered at the Polytechnic University in solidarity with the political prisoner Dimitris Koufontinas, a former member of the revolutionary November 17 organization who entered a hunger strike demanding a transfer to an Athenian prison instead of his current high-security facility.
A few dozen Chileans gathered at Plaza Dignidad in Santiago for the New Year, protesting against Piñera and for amnesty for all political prisoners. Demonstrators waving the Mapuche flag were immediately attacked by Carabineros, who used water cannons against a tiny demonstration of about 25-30 people.
Massive protests engulfed the capital of Thailand, with many demonstrators being students and anti-monarchy activists. The crowds measured above 150,000 in attendance in Bangkok alone, and several clashes occurred with police after protesters insulted the queen, which in the Kingdom is punishable by life in prison.
