President pushes bill in bid to end unrest
Chile’s President has sent a bill to Congress that would raise the minimum wage, one of a series of measures to try to contain nearly three weeks of anti-government protests over inequality in one of Latin America’s richest countries.
President Sebastian Pinera signed the measure that seeks to guarantee a minimum salary of about US$470 ($740) a month as demonstrations demanding improved social services and greater equality continued.
Some groups clashed with police in the capital, Santiago, while hundreds of honking vehicles travelling in a caravan caused massive traffic jams to demand a reduction in tolls.
Flag-waving demonstrators brought traffic to a standstill in some roads and affected many commuters.
Television images showed Finance Minister Ignacio Briones, who was headed to Congress in the port city of Valparaiso, stepping down from his vehicle to talk to truck drivers.
“We have a series of huge social demands, and you are all aware of that. People are having a really, really rough time in all sectors,” he told them. “It’s easy to get riled up and think that we can suddenly address them all, but just like in a home, if you spend all the savings, then what?”
The unrest began last month over a rise to subway fares, but it has grown into a massive movement demanding a broad range of changes. Most of the protests have been peaceful, but some have turned violent. At least 20 people have died in clashes, looting and arson that forced the cancellation of two upcoming major international summits.
Chile’s centre-right Government has responded with a host of proposed changes that must be approved by Congress. But many Chileans say they’re a mere Band-Aid that fails to address deep social inequality that has been unresolved since Chile returned to democracy in 1990 after a 17-year dictatorship.
Some protesters are demanding a new constitution to replace the 1980 charter written under General Augusto Pinochet’s 1973-1990 military dictatorship. It allows many social services and natural resources, including water, to be wholly or partially privatised.
Flor Silva, a 70-year-old retiree, said Pinera’s plan to increase the minimum wage seems like a bad joke because no one can survive with that money. But she still hopes it helps.
“Even a coin helps us since prices keep going up,” she said.