Chile students' mass fare-dodging expands into city-wide protest

[sandensea]

Thousands of school and university students have joined a mass fare-dodging protest in Chile, flooding into metro stations in the country’s capital to vault turnstiles and vandalise equipment amid simmering unrest over the rising cost of living.

The campaign erupted when secondary school students began to jump barriers in groups following a fare rise on 6 October, which put Santiago’s metro among the most expensive in Latin America at 830 pesos ($1.17) during the rush hour - a considerable sum in a country where the median wage is around $4 hourly.

Bus prices also climbed as part of the changes.

The demonstrations have spread across the city, leading to violent clashes between protesters and police, who have used teargas to disperse crowds on concourses and platforms.

Protesters have vandalized barriers and electronic turnstiles, and pulled emergency brakes on trains, affecting the more than 2.5 million passengers who use the Santiago metro each day.

Police have made dozens of arrests and two officers were reportedly injured.

At: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/18/chile-students-mass-fare-dodging-expands-into-city-wide-protest

[Judi Lynn]

1. So now President Pinera is pulling out the stops, like Macri.

He is also a firm supporter of a previous violent dictator, General Pinochet.

This article tells us he is heading right down the same path Macri has taken, now that he's in his second term. Apparently he sees it as a mandate to stick it to the powerless people in his country, as well.

Chile has had students speaking up for years, hope someone is going to start listening to them. Chilean students, like their counterparts in Argentina, paid a terrible price to protest under their own US-supported dictatorship. More power to them.

Thank you for the information.

[Judi Lynn]

2. Angry Chileans clash with police for second day

19 OCT 2019



AFP / Martin BERNETTI
Protesters argue with Chilean soldiers during clashes in Santiago on October 19, 2019

Chileans angry over social and economic issues clashed with security forces for a second day Saturday despite a state of emergency declared to quell the worst violence in years in one of Latin America's most stable countries.

. . .

The spasm of unrest was triggered by an increase in metro fares but reflected a much broader anger over economic and social conditions, including a yawning gap between rich and poor.

. . .

Throughout Friday, rampaging protesters clashed with riot police in several parts of the capital while the headquarters of the ENEL Chile power company and a Banco Chile branch -- both in the city center -- were set on fire and heavily damaged.

. . .

The metro fare hike served to wake up a society that was averse to violence after the horrors of the Pinochet dictatorship from 1973-1990, which left more than 3,200 people dead or missing, sociologists say.

More:
https://www.afp.com/en/news/3954/angry-chileans-clash-police-second-day-doc-1lj8of4