Wednesday, May 11, 2011

And just like that...

And just like that, police are spraying protesters bright pink.

"On Monday, at least nine unarmed people are believed to have been killed – including three shot in the back as they fled.

The tactic of spraying paint at protesters fairly common in Uganda and elsewhere in the continent.

It was used during the Apartheid era in South Africa, most famously in the 1989 Purple Rain Protest in Cape Town.

Spraying protesters a distinctive colour is carried out by such regimes because difficult for people to escape the police’s clutches while out of the demonstration zone.

The protests have sparked violence in the capital Kampala and several other towns for nearly a month.

But the protests show no sign of dying down..."-Reuters


Splash of anger: Police spray Ugandan protesters with coloured water during demonstrations in the capital Kampala


Pinked: Ugandan opposition politician Olara Otunnu is shielded by his supporters during the attack


Overcome with emulsion: Spraying tactics are the latest desperate tactic of disputed President Yoweri Museveni


Makeing their mark: The paint is used both to humiliate protesters and make it easier for police to track them down