Protesting Chilean students occupy main Santiago university despite arrests
Following over a hundred arrests made on Thursday and clashes with police, students in Santiago occupied on Friday the central building of the University of Chile, the country’s most important higher education facility, as the demands to the government over education reform ensue.
Some thirty university students entered the building this morning, located metres from the Chilean presidential palace, in the centre of Santiago.
In 2011, the building was taken over for the period of five months, while bloody protests and clashes took place on the Chilean capital city's streets on numerous occasions throughout the year.
“Secondary school students and university students are in the same fight and we are not going to take a step back on this,” the president of the student’s federation from the University of Chile Gabriel Boric said on his Twitter account today.
Students reignited their claims two weeks ago in the hopes of changing the education system left by dictator Augusto Pinochet (in power from 1973-1990) demanding free university education and central government control over public schools.
Many schools were occupied in peaceful protests across the Chilean capital city during this time, which came to a head on Thursday when police arrested 139 students for participating in the protests.
Chile the only OECD member in South America is one of the economic success stories of the last two decades, but it scores the lowest in education in spite of great advances.
Chileans spend 30% of income on higher education, 84% of which is borne entirely by the individual. This is three times higher than in the United States, Japan or Australia. Loans are available, but the alarming number of families who default (40%) forces many students to drop out.
A 2006 UNESCO study found that 26% students from the two upper income quintiles dropped out before their fourth year. Among the two lowest quintiles, the figure jumped to 65%.
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14 comments Feed
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Stubborn little trouble makers, and I thought todays youth didn't care about anything. As much as I don't like their tactics and their disruption to everyday life you gotta hand it to them, they are true believers. They just won't give up.
Which would you rather do, go to lectures and work hard or hang out with your friends being 'radical'. They made their point and it is time to break the habit.
7 @ Not, just a Paraguayan clever poster.....
10 @ Is that what is happening with you, Argentine guys...? You know that “the thieve judge under his own condition” It won´t be strange that the corrupt Argentine Gvt. has been paying some hard defenders posters for its “regresives” policies applied over the regular citiziens....Anyone could think that way reading some post written too hard, even poisoned, against the others that have a different point of view.
Be respectful to the others if you want be respected.....!!!
@7 Forgetit87 Another faggot?
@9 Forgetit87 Sh*t in a basket. With faggots?
@10 Are you paid by the argie government? Or are you just on a promise that you will be allowed to slurp CFK's ar*e? You really are a disgusting little pervert. Did I read somewhere you are in Scotland? Mostly pervs in Scotland. More than half the Scottish population are perverts. Be shot of the perverts soon, with any luck.
#12 Not if the Olympics have anything to do with it, us Scottish “pervs” look like we'll vote to stay in Team GB. I know I will, even if that means continuing to share a country with you =)
#10, The new president of Paraguay has done some good things (liberation of bio technology for farmers, pushing for titling of land that is under the campesinos control, fired about a 1000 workers from Itaipu), but I think the guy sucks like most other politicians. He signed into law the Personal Income Tax; that alone makes him equal to the devil to me.
EVERYONE - Most students are not out protesting, either because their parents won't let them, or they don't agree with the reasons of the protest. I mean think about it, there must be a few hundred thousand students in Chile, how many are out protesting? Look at it as any other business; if I own a store, and my clients don't like my product, they can go somewhere else. But for them to come over and invade my property, vandalize it, and demand a change in my product, doesn't seem very appropriate. So why is this any different???? Because it is education? You don't need education to move up in life people. Look at the millions of Mexicans in the USA. Damn it, look at ALL of the immigrants that have gone to the USA in all of its history. Look at the Brazilians that came to Paraguay, most couldn't even read!! and they are millionaires now!!! Education is a luxury, not a God given right.
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