Chile The Person of the Year: The Protester...
Special Edition... By: Bernardus G. Stroomer Janssen Duighuizen Photos & by me... Santiago, Chile.
December, 2011.
The students have been demanding for months now an end to the educational legacy of the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet... & polls have indicated that 70% of the population backs the students’ demands. Student protests turn violent (again) in Santiago... Chile's student protests are now in their sixth month. The students recently voted to extend their protests, rejecting negotiations with President Piùera... 1000's of students descended today in the downtown area of Santiago for their 40th massive protest march since May & were backed by teachers and the trade unions. When 100's of masked demonstrators began throwing stones & homemade firebombs... the Chilean police answered with tear gas and water cannons. There have been a total of 5,658 recorded protests nationwide to-date in 2011... The government remains unsure how to respond.