> The beekeepers had demonstrated in front of the presidential palace in the capital Santiago.
> Seven police officers were stung when they tried to remove the hives set up by the demonstrators, which were blocking a main road.
> The ongoing drought has severely affected beekeeping in Chile, affecting the bees’ food sources such as flowers and crops.
> To lend weight to their cause, the beekeepers set up around 60 hives with about 10,000 bees in front of the palace and prevented the police from breaking up the demonstration.
> One of the demonstrators told journalists that the death of the bee colonies was devastating not only for themselves but for the whole world.
> The demonstrators are demanding government reform to raise honey prices or provide subsidies to honey producers, Reuters news agency reports.
> > Agriculture ministry officials shared the protesters’ concerns about the impact of the drought, adding that they had been assisting 20 communities suffering from severe water shortages for months.
> However, the protest led to some of the bees flying around in the air, which worried passers-by.
> “This is dangerous for people who are allergic because it can lead to death,” a reporter said.
> Bee populations have declined rapidly around the world in recent years due to habitat loss, pollution and the use of pesticides, among other factors.