35 Students Detained in
Chile During Protest
Against New Education
Law
Some 35 Chilean students
were detained during a
new protest against a
controversial education
law.
Some 3,000 high school
and college students
were blocked by police
en route to President
Michelle Bachelet's
palace, trying to
deliver a letter to the
president to protest the
law -- General Law of
Education (LGE).
In the letter, the
students made it clear
that they were "open to
dialogue," said Amador
Sepulveda, spokesman for
the Coordinator Assembly
of High School and
College Students (Aceus).
The protest is only one
of a wave of protests
and demonstrations
against the new law,
which the demonstrators
believe fails to reform
the old education law
established during the
military dictatorship
and fails to address
inequality and
profit-focused practices
within the education
system.
Aceus has decided to
launch a nation-wide
strike Friday, in which
trade union groups are
expected to participate.
Education Minister
Monica Jimenez said
there is no reason for
this type of
manifestations and
insisted she would not
drop the law currently
under discussion in the
Senate.
"I would tell them that
this law is underway,
there is no reason to
link your strike to the
LGE because this law is
great progress for
education in Chile,"
Jimenez said.
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