Observers from Amnesty International have stated that U.S. law-enforcement officers have used excessive force against demonstrators protesting about the shooting dead of a black teenager by a white police officer in a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri.
Amnesty has now urged the U.S. “to end police violence” in Ferguson, a suburb of St. Louis, where 18-year-old black Michael Brown was killed in a confrontation with a police officer on August 9.
This is the first time the organization has sent observers within the United States.
According to Amnesty International’s Americas director Erika Guevara Rosas, the police used excessive force against peaceful demonstrators, adding that those suspected of illegal action against protesters should be investigated and prosecuted if necessary.
“Using excessive force to quell protests is unacceptable,” Rosas said, adding: “Police in Ferguson must conform to the U.S. constitution and international standards on the use of force and firearms.”
Rosas also said that people should be allowed to peacefully express their opinion and journalists should not be prevented from doing their work.
Meanwhile, Amnesty executive director Steven Hawkins said in a TV interview on Tuesday: “The indiscriminate use of tear gas being lobbed into a crowd where there are children and elderly; that’s a clear violation of human rights standards.”
Clashes in Ferguson between police and protesters spread over the weekend following the release of the name of the white officer – Darren Wilson – who shot unarmed Brown, igniting racial tensions in the predominantly black city.
