No guns? Only SWAT was armed in Sept. 21 protests, says Remulla
MANILA, Philippines — Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said the Philippine National Police (PNP) exercised "maximum tolerance" under President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s directive during the massive anti-corruption protests on September 21.
This, he said, means police officials would only have their riot gear and shields, but no firearms and teargas.
"The president's directive very explicitly stated that the PNP shall act with maximum tolerance and with maximum tolerance, they only have their riot gear and no firearms," he said at a Palace press briefing on Monday, September 22.
Remulla said around 4,000 police officers were deployed to “contain the rallies,” most of which were on Mendiola and Ayala Bridge, where violence erupted.
He stressed that they carried no firearms, except for members of the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit, who were armed when some unidentified rallyists broke into a motel and allegedly stole from its vaults in Manila.
Remulla said officers were barred from carrying firearms to prevent the risk of these being grabbed and turned against law enforcers during crowd engagements.
"All the soldiers, all the policemen behind, had instructions to use maximum tolerance. They had no tear gas and they had no firearms," he added.
Use of flammables. Remulla said police only pushed back when individuals, some wearing black masks, hurled Molotov cocktails at them and set a backhoe on fire in Mendiola. Stones alone, he added, could be handled with riot gear under the maximum tolerance rule, but Molotovs “cross the line.”
Molotov cocktails, also known as poor man's grenade, are crude flammable hand-thrown devices fashioned using bottles.
"When rocks were thrown, you could shield yourself, but Molotov cocktails cross the line. that can cause death," he added, mentioning how these individuals had been arrested.
READ: What we know so far: The Sept. 21 Mendiola-Recto riots
Toll. Around 5:30 p.m. on September 21, Remulla reported that about 216 individuals had been arrested during the rallies.
He added that about 95 police officers were wounded in clashes with protesters, while the Department of Health said 48 injured individuals were brought to hospitals after the Mendiola incidents, including one who died from stab wounds.
Despite the clashes, he and PNP Chief Jose Nartatez maintained that the anti-corruption demonstrations were largely peaceful, saying they had not yet received any official reports of deaths resulting from the protests..
Of the 216 individuals detained at the Manila Police District, 127 were adults and 89 were minors. Most of the minors, aged 15 to 17, were classified as children in conflict with the law, while 24 were 14 years old or younger and considered children at risk.
Having interviewed some of the minors, Remulla said they shared their intention to burn Malacañang. He said he also heard of a protester at Liwasang Bonifacio urging fellow rallyists heading to Mendiola to bring their lighters, which he took as an allusion to plans of setting the Palace on fire.
While officers were instructed to exercise maximum tolerance, several videos showed uniformed men striking rallyists with batons. One protester was also seen being dragged and carried before being dropped on the ground, though it remains unclear whether this was intentional.
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