AP Photo BOG101
By MARGARITA MARTINEZ
Associated Press Writer
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) - Clashes broke out Monday between Colombian police and Indians protesting a planned free trade accord with the United States, leaving one Indian dead and at least 15 wounded.
Some 8,000 Indians embarked Monday on a weeklong march in western Colombia to protest a trade deal that they say would only worsen Colombia's unemployment woes.
Alberto Wazorna, a protest leader, said rioting erupted after police provoked the marchers when they reached a major highway near Viterbo, 130 miles west of Bogota. ``It was not necessary for the police to confront us, we were walking peacefully,'' he said.
A National Police spokesman had no immediate comment on the accusations, but confirmed that a 53-year-old Indian died after inhaling tear gas. At least 15 others, including several children, were wounded, the spokesman said, speaking on condition of anonymity according to police briefing rules.
Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and the United States began negotiations a free trade deal in May 2004, but differences over issues such as agriculture and intellectual property rules have delayed the treaty's signing.
