Videos and witnesses invalidated government accounts of restraint from the September 21 riots in Manila, showing police using force against protesters and bystanders.
Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla stated that the police were directed to exercise maximum tolerance.
He also said most officers did fire a smoke grenade as a warning, insisting that no tear gas was used.
However, Zedrich Madrid, a freelance photojournalist present during the riots, told Philstar.com (a well-known Philippine publication) that he experienced the effects of tear gas in the area.
“I was there noong binato ang tear gas, sumakit talaga yung mata ko noon (I was there when the tear gas was thrown, my eyes were really in pain that time),” he said.
Numerous online videos show police violence against minors and bystanders, the use of a man as a ‘human shield,’ and the firing of multiple gunshots.
