Leader cancels summits over national protests
CHILEAN PRESIDENT Sebastian Pinera has said he is cancelling two major international summits so he can focus on his response to nationwide protests that have left 20 dead, hundreds injured and damaged businesses and infrastructure.
The decision is a major blow to Chile’s image as a regional oasis of stability and economic development. US and Chinese negotiators were hoping to finalise a modest trade agreement in time for presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping to sign it at the AsiaPacific Economic Co-operation (Apec) summit in Santiago, set for November 16-17.
Under the tentative deal, the US had agreed to suspend plans to raise tariffs on 250 billion dollars in Chinese imports, and Beijing had agreed to step up purchases of US farm products.
Mr Pinera also said Chile would not host the global UN global climate gathering planned for December 2-13 “thanks to the difficult circumstances that the country has seen in recent weeks”.
Chile has seen 13 days of massive protests to demand greater economic equality and better public services in a country long seen as an economic success story. The demonstrations have been accompanied by some vandalism and arson, which forced the shutdown of numerous subway stations.
“This has been a very difficult decision that causes us great pain,” Mr Pinera said in a televised address. But he added: “A president always has to put the needs of his compatriots first.”
UN climate change executive secretary Patricia Espinosa issued a statement saying that “alternative hosting options” were being explored.
And a UN official said that all UN venues are being considered as options. Those would include cities such as New York, Geneva, Bonn, Vienna and Nairobi.
The Santiago conference was meant to work out some of the remaining unresolved rules for countries on climate efforts, smoothing the way for the bigger effort in the 2020 summit.