QCOSTARICA – It was last week, around 4:30pm, when a protestors were still in full demonstration in the area of the Liberia airport in Guancaste. It was also at the same time that Bruce, his brother Ricky, Daniel and Lily were on their way to San Rafael Hospital in Liberia to an Orthopedic appointment for Bruce’s knees.
On his Facebook page, Daniel Bizier, tells his story how they were attacked by a group of some 40 protestors, “with killing looks about them”, began striking their vehicle and occupants with pipes, sticks and stones.
“Bruce and I were injured and taken to the hospital by ambulance. I was the worse with a cut in the neck that would not stop bleeding; they thought it might be my carotid artery. It stopped finally with stitches. I also had a shoulder injury. My shoulder is about twice the normal size where I was hit with a club.They busted out all the windows and beat the entire vehicle and us with clubs and large rocks. Bruce had glass in his left eye and Ricky had minor cuts. They spent 30 minutes pulling glass out of my face neck, ears etc.,” writes Daniel.
“THERE WERE MANY POLICE THERE ABOUT 40 AND THEY DID NOTHING TO HELP US OR stop the rioting people,” said Daniel in the post dated September 2.
Daniel says that the following day, he went to Liberia to demand to know why the police did act, to protect them. He was told to call the judicial police, the Organismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ).
Instead Daniel says he called Casa Presidencial (Presidential House) where he was told they will investigate the matter. “I also called the US Embassy and they are also investigating,” says Daniel on his Facebook page.
“Thank God we are alive because we all thought we had had it and were going to be killed. Bruce is so upset he is moving back to the United States. Costa Rica is really changing and there is so much more crime here. What makes things really bad is the fact that we are on our own and cannot expect help from the police,” says Daniel.
According to the Fuerza Publica (police) there were no reports of any arrests during the protest.
