Four beekeepers were arrested after they staged a protest in front of the presidential palace in Santiago, Chile, on Monday. According to local authorities, quoted by Reuters, there were at least seven police officers stung by bees during the demonstration and had to be taken to hospital.
Beekeepers placed 60 hives, which contained around 10,000 bees each, on the avenue in front of the palace.
They aimed to call for government reform to improve honey prices or provide subsidies to honey producers. Among their demands they asked to be received by President Sebastian Piñera.
Some passersby were alarmed by the risk posed by the bees. “It is dangerous for allergic people because they can cause death”, said a local resident.
Honey production has been hampered by a long-lasting drought in the country, which has dried up food sources for bees such as flowers and crops. While drought is not uncommon in Chile, the current has persisted since 2010 and climate change is at least partly to blame, scientists say.
