Colombian Police Use Water Cannon Against Anti-Bush Protests

A force of some 200 police were deployed Thursday to control a group of students at Bogota National University in a violent protest against US President George W Bush's upcoming visit to Colombia.

Authorities said that students threw stones and fireworks at police, who responded with water jets to prevent protestors from disrupting traffic on an important thoroughfare in the Colombian capital.

In a separate incident, students at the Bogota Pedagogic University clashed with police in the northern part of the capital.

Opposition parties, trade unions and students marched Thursday for the second consecutive day, largely peacefully, to protest Bush's visit.

The US president is set to arrive Sunday in Bogota on a seven-hour visit, during a Latin American tour with other scheduled stops in Brazil, Uruguay, Guatemala and Mexico.