From 15:00, when the first female contingent demonstrating for #8M arrived in the capital Zócalo, protesters and police officers clashed. As a result of this and other incidents, 25 people have been injured so far.

For two and a half hours, a small group of women tried to tear down the fences erected to protect the National Palace and the Metropolitan Cathedral. With hammers and aerosols, his members had hit the structure without being able to knock it down.

When they were about to climb the fence, the police from the Citizen Security Secretariat (SSC) pulled it out by activating a fire extinguisher.

As the minutes passed and before the arrival of more women trying to tear down the building, women in uniforms activated fire extinguishers, which protesters said had not only fire extinguishing powder, but a combination of pepper spray. This, despite the fact that the authorities insist that they do not use it.

That #SSC report: Female staff from #AthenasBundling it does not carry gas of any kind, only personal protective equipment and fire extinguishers to reduce any fire. https://t.co/328ehSi4mx

– SSC CDMX (@SSC_CDMX) March 8, 2022

“For information, it is important to reiterate that for their detention activities, female police officers only have shields, helmets and fire extinguishers,” wrote Martí Batres, Secretary of Government of CDMX, on his Twitter account.

Members of the Marabunta Brigade, who filled spray bottles with water and other substances, rushed to treat the women who said the dust burned their eyes and faces.

“It’s a combination of fire extinguisher powder and pepper spray, that’s why it burns them so much,” said one Marabunta member who helps the teenage girls.

“Relax nothing will happen. It will happen, don’t touch yourself and rub your eyes,” he advised.

The action of the capital’s police forces the women who hit the fence to retreat to seek help.

“The police don’t look after me, my friends look after me”, “They are afraid of us” and “I hope they will be angry when they kill a woman” are some of the slogans heard in the Zócalo.

Lee: #8M: Women take to the streets at CDMX

The women also tried to tear down the fence placed in front of the Metropolitan Cathedral. As happened at the State Palace, the response of the police was to activate their fire extinguishers.

In the area, outside of these two walled spaces, there is no police element, not even transit.

In the distance, several elements of the Mexican Red Cross and Fire Department followed the mobilization.

At 5:30 p.m., a group of women continued to beat the fence in front of the State Palace, trying to knock it down.

Police activated their fire extinguishers from a small gap between the fences.

Before 18:00, Secretary Batres reported that 25 people were injured, including police and civilians. That figure includes a teenage girl who was injured when she broke glass at Hidalgo Metro Station.

At this time, @SSC_CDMX reported 25 people requiring medical care as of March 8th. Three of them required transfer to hospital: police were injured in the face and two masked protesters tore down the glass structure of the Hidalgo subway.

– Martí Batres (@martibatres) March 8, 2022