Police Officers Stung While Trying To Remove Beehives From Road As Beekeepers Protest In Chile
Seven Chilean police officers were stung and taken to hospital after they attempted to arrest protesting beekeepers and remove their honeycombs.
A group of beekeepers were arrested in Chile following a protest calling for government support for their industry.
As many as seven police officers were stung as they tried to remove beehives placed by the protesters to block the main thoroughfare near Chile's presidential palace in Santiago, Reuters reported.
Reuters
The beekeepers are calling for government reforms to improve honey prices or to provide subsidies to producers. They have asked to meet with President Sebastian Pinera.
The long-time drought hasn't helped matters as it has withered the bees' food sources such as flowers and crops, leaving honey production suffering.
To make the government take notice of their protests, the beekeepers set up some 60 hives containing around 10,000 bees in front of the palace and prevented the police from dispersing the demonstration.
Passers-by were forced to duck and flee as bees escaped when police officers tried to move them.
Abejas en la Alameda, frente a La Moneda por protesta de apicultores. [Slowmo] pic.twitter.com/BqBUmHfHUy
¡ª 8livier (@olivierhdezz) January 3, 2022
As per Reuters, one of the protesting beekeepers, Jose Iturra, told local reporters that the drought in the Colina commune north of Santiago was killing the local bee population.
"Bees are dying. There would be no life if the bees die. That's what we wanted to highlight with this demonstration," Iturra said.
Ministry of Agriculture officials say they have taken cognizance of the issue and said they share the protesters' concern about the effect of the drought.
Omar Guzman, the regional agricultural secretary, told reporters that the government has been providing aid for months to 20 communities experiencing severe water shortages.
Reuters
Some passers-by were alarmed by the risk the bees posed to the public.
"It's dangerous for the people who are allergic (to bees) because they can cause death," one local said.
Seven national police officers, called Carabiniers, were stung trying to arrest the beekeepers and move the beehives out of the street, and were taken to the hospital, police officials said.
Droughts and rising temperatures from climate change have affected bee populations worldwide. A 2020 study published in the journal Science found that populations fell by around 50% in North America and 17% in Europe in one generation.
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