Protests in Chile

    

Protests in Santiago, Chile have been happening for over a month now with no end in sight. Currently, authorities and human rights groups have counted 23 deaths, about 7,000 detentions, and 2,391 demonstrators plus 1,000 officers injured. The catalyst for this unrest was a hike in metro fees, but frustrations have been building in people for awhile  over the growing income inequality gap and rising costs of living.  As protests and some riots progress, the police response is becoming increasingly more violent. For example, according to this Reuters article, written by Dave Sherwood, over 1,000 lawsuits were filed against Chile's security force alleging abuses, like torture and sexual violence. Also, Chile's police chief has been forced to suspend the use of rubber bullets after a study by Universidad de Chile, commissioned by Santiago's Salvador Eye Hospital with support from Red Cross Chile, found that rubber bullets causing eye injuries are only 20% rubber, the rest is lead and other materials. When speaking to Aislinn Laing, another reporter from Reuters who wrote this article, Patricio Acosta, the president of Red Cross Chile," said more people had lost the use of an eye in the past three weeks than in 20 years," because of excessive and improper use of tear gas and rubber bullets. Although I am still unclear what protesters are specifically demanding from the government, hopefully they accomplish the goals that are being fighting for, so the violence can come to an end.