CEP Responds to Government Delegate Over Police Video at Teachers' Protest
The police union defends the presumption of innocence and questions Pilar Bernabé's statements about the intervention during the teachers' demonstration.
By Neus Mollà i Roca
••4 min read
IA
Generic image of police emergency lights reflecting on wet asphalt at night.
The Spanish Police Confederation (CEP) has responded to the Government delegate in the Valencian Community, Pilar Bernabé, following her statements about a video of a police intervention during a teachers' protest in Valencia, announcing an investigation to determine responsibilities.
The controversy over a video of a police intervention during a teachers' protest in Valencia has seen a new reaction. The Spanish Police Confederation (CEP) has responded to the Government delegate in the Valencian Community, Pilar Bernabé, after she announced an investigation to «determine responsibilities» and described the images as «unacceptable».
The police union's response focuses on three points: the defense of the presumption of innocence, the limits of the right to protest, and the protection of the National Police's work during teacher mobilizations. The CEP believes Bernabé has spoken prematurely about events that competent bodies must still analyze.
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"You are not going to investigate anything. Competent bodies will do so, and they will decide something that you already take for granted, which is someone's guilt. Then we ask for respect for the presumption of innocence in other areas…"
The Government delegate stated that the events would be investigated «exhaustively to determine responsibilities». The CEP has replied that this task does not fall to Bernabé, but to the competent bodies.
The organization also questioned Bernabé's statement about the right to protest. The delegate maintained that «protecting the right to protest safely is above any circumstance». The CEP rejects this approach and defends that public safety must be taken into account in any protest.
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"The right to protest is not absolute. It is a lie that it is above any other circumstance. Safety is for everyone. And especially if one's own life and others' are being put at risk by blocking traffic"
The police union also directly criticized Bernabé for her words about the impact of this episode on the National Police as a whole. The delegate stated that what happened was «a totally incomprehensible event that tarnishes the work of the Police in these three weeks of demonstrations, in coordination with the organizing unions».
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"the work of the Police is not tarnished and is far above political figures like you, who rush to take credit for our successes in press conferences but take 'zero seconds' to judge and sentence. Perhaps because in 2027 there are municipal elections?"
The images that have originated the controversy show a woman from behind, walking on the road, when a National Police officer, wearing a helmet, runs towards her and hits her with his baton. The woman falls to the ground after the impact. The video has circulated on social media amid the conflict over the public education strike in the Valencian Community.
The dissemination of the images has provoked reactions from various sectors of the educational community. The Gonzalo Anaya Confederation, which groups FAMPA Castelló Penyagolosa, FAMPA València, and FAMPA Enric Valor of Alicante, has «unequivocally» condemned the police aggression suffered by the teacher.
The entity has considered these to be «extremely serious» events that «cannot have a place in a democratic society». It also stressed that it is «particularly worrying» that an aggression could occur by «someone who has the obligation to protect and guarantee the safety of citizens».
According to the organization, these types of actions cause serious harm to the victim and, furthermore, «erode trust in institutions and attack the values of respect and coexistence that should govern our society».
FAMPA Castelló Penyagolosa has expressed its «absolute rejection and deep indignation» at what it has described as a «disproportionate police aggression». The federation has denounced that it considers it «intolerable and unacceptable to respond with violence to the legitimate peaceful demands of the educational community».
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"We must not look away, and today we must publicly denounce the police aggression"
Beyond condemning the events, the Gonzalo Anaya Confederation has called for a resolution to the educational conflict. The entity has reiterated families' concern over the slow pace of negotiations affecting the educational community.
The organization has requested «solutions that allow us to face the end of the school year and the preparation for the next one with guarantees». In its statement, it recalled that families do not consider the school year over because important processes such as student evaluation, school admissions, and other issues directly affecting educational centers are still pending.
Families do not consider the school year over when there are still such important processes as student evaluation, school admissions, and other pending issues that directly affect educational centers and families
Therefore, it has urged the Ministry of Education to «abandon blockages and red lines and engage in real, agile, and effective negotiation with union representatives».
