AKIPRESS.COM - Four young protesters and a police officer were killed in increasingly violent clashes over social security cuts in Nicaragua, Associated Press reported Friday.
Protests began Wednesday after a new law was signed increasing tax contributions and cutting pension income in the social security system. Some demonstrations began peacefully, with protesters waving placards and chanting, “Viva Nicaragua libre!” (“Long live a free Nicaragua!”)
But in some areas, pro-government forces clashed with protesters, police lobbed tear gas and fired rubber bullets from behind shields, and buildings were set afire. A police officer and protester were fatally shot on Thursday in Nicaragua’s capital, Managua, where thousands took to the streets, and another protester was shot dead in Tipitapa, northeast of the capital, the Red Cross told Reuters.
AP reported that two protesting university students were killed on Friday.
One eyewitness reported on Twitter that five buildings, among them the National Lottery in León and the student center at the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua, were burning Friday afternoon. Protests had reportedly spread to at least 10 cities.