Riots, vandalism follow Pinera's cabinet reshuffle in Chile, new calls for protest
SANTIAGO - Chileans took to the streets again on Tuesday, pouring by the thousands into plazas and shutting down main boulevards in a sign that government promises of reform continued to fall short.
President Sebastian Pinera’s newly appointed spokeswoman Karla Rubilar condemned the previous night’s mayhem, saying it did not reflect the wishes of the majority. The continuing unrest in Chile follows a week of riots, arson and protests over inequality that have resulted in at least 18 dead and 7,000 arrested, prosecutors said. Chilean businesses lost more than $1.4 billion. The city’s metro suffered nearly $400 million in damages.
Protests over a hike in metro fares spun out of control earlier this month, prompting Pinera to pledge sweeping social and economic reforms, and to upend his cabinet. “If, after that massive march on Friday, we get nothing but a cabinet change in which they continue to nominate more of the same people, then violence is our only option,” she told Reuters.
A U.N. spokesman on Tuesday said its human rights office was very concerned by the violence and destruction, and said it would soon send a mission to Chile to investigate human rights abuses.The protests have ground Santiago to a near halt for more than a week. Rioters have looted more than 600 businesses, including many supermarkets and electronics shops. An iconic mall and shops in the mirror-windowed Costanera Center, South America’s tallest building, remained closed Tuesday.
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