MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Chilean striking teachers take to the streets; million students with no classes
The peaceful rally held on Wednesday turned violent when clashes erupted between riot police and a group of protesters, which led to arrests 
Teachers have been on a strike for nearly 20 days while the nationwide walkout is affecting more than one million students across the country. Thousands of striking teachers have taken to the streets in the Chilean capital Santiago to protest against education reform plans. The peaceful rally held on Wednesday turned violent when clashes erupted between riot police and a group of protesters, which led to the arrest of a number of people.
The demonstrations against the education reform bill, proposed by the government of President Michelle Bachelet, have reportedly been staged in at least six other cities.
The new bill, currently going through the country’s Congress, reduces teachers’ wages and requires them to spend more “non-school hours” for meetings and planning. Under the new law, those who do not abide by the rules would be dismissed.
Teachers are calling for the annulment of the proposed certification exams, and better salaries and working conditions.
The Chilean government had previously said that it is open to talks with teachers' unions; however, teachers say no deal has been reached about their demands, prompting new waves of rallies.
The teachers have been on a strike for nearly 20 days while the nationwide walkout is affecting more than one million students across the country.
On June 11, another large student demonstration in the Chilean capital turned violent as police fired teargas and used water cannon to disperse the protesters.
Since 2011, protesters have been holding mass demonstrations, calling on the Chilean president to implement education reforms, increase the salaries of teachers, and gradually introduce free university education.
President Bachelet has recently come under pressure since she has failed to fulfill reforms promised in her 2013 re-election campaign.
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Read all commentsOur president is sincerely trying to make needed reforms in our educational program, but extreme left anarchists are bent on destroying the peace.
Jun 18th, 2015 - 07:58 am 0I personally believe our country can do more and we have a socialist president, but the left pushes for violence.
Chile has a higher level of public education than many of our neighbors and most of us support improvements, but not the violence.
I HATE Communists...
I agree that we need some reforms to our eductional system, but in othe other side, because the state run schools have failed and the present municipal run school even being a better solution isn´t the best.....Probably the best solution is a large number of private schools with total state subvention and a lower number of half state subvention and half paid fee to ensure that the quality can be improved, no long teacher's union strikes, no political interferences, and highest results requirements for teachers and pupils, when the school supporters need to show why parents must choose their schools over the others based on results, not only in math or language but in social values as persons.
Jun 18th, 2015 - 03:11 pm 0Unfortunately, our teacher´s unions have been managed by the extreme left wing (communist party) so there is nothing to do with it to improve the quality because they only ask for equality no matter if it means go down about quality.....
We need to improve the requirements to the people traying to become teachers asking them to be the highest of their school promotion and with vocational skills that ensure the highest commitment with the pupils, must be very well paidbased in their own CV, where post grade studies makes a plus, not just the years into the system, also it´s necessary to improve the schools curricular net giving preference to technical scools over the scientific-humanistic schools as at the present is to obtain more and better trainned school graduates able to get a good job easily and better paid when they finish studies.......About universities, it´s necessary to redesign the curricular nets to get shorter grades without superfluous matters so the cost get cheaperand quality higher, with a the ceapest cretid system so any student that meets the high requirements to be accepted into a certified university o technical institute can afford it a pay back when working after garduation or quitting.
Why is Bachelet sincerely trying for anything while she openly supports the type of socialism in Argentina and Brazil designed to create hunger and chaos?
Jun 18th, 2015 - 06:57 pm 0You hate communists? Chile's business class tries to drink china kool aid to believe that Bachelet can not piss away the country's future on her Argentina modeled lies. And Piñera lit candles for nelson Mandela. A communist and a killer. In Chile there is no right.
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