Supporters of Colombian presidential candidate Enrique Peñalosa clashed with police in Medellin over the distribution of political advertising on Sunday.
Members of the campaign for Green Party (Alianza Verde – AV) candidate clashed with police in Colombia’s second biggest city on Sunday when they were told they were not permitted to hand out political advertising to people on the Metro network.
PROFILE: Enrique Peñalosa
A video circulated on social networking sites depicting Peñalosa supporters fighting with police at Hospital station.
According to several witnesses, the confrontation began when police told campaigners that they were not authorized to distribute political advertising within Metro facilities. This triggered verbal and physical attacks from both sides which escalated off the train platform and onto the stairs of the station itself.
Despite there being no formal statement given from the Green Party, Peñalosa’s twitter account tweeted early on Monday morning that “urban insecurity is an obstacle for social integration on public transport and in public places.” It is unclear as to whether this is in direct reference to the brawl but reflects Peñalosa’s desire for social cohesion, a wish his promoters do not seem to be following.
La inseguridad urbana es un obstáculo a la integración social en el transporte público, los espacios públicos.
— Enrique Penalosa (@EnriquePenalosa) abril 21, 2014
As of yet Medellin Metro has not released a statement on the event.