August 2011
Students and young people in Chile are standing up for justice and equality in education for us all, no matter what corner of the globe we teach or study in.
What’s at stake is an altogether different vision for education and for its place in society as a lever for social justice and equality.
For months now Chilean school and higher education students have been on hunger strike, occupied schools and university campuses, and organised a great diversity of mass protests against privatised education.
Almost half of Chile’s school students attend government schools, where decentralisation means children and young people are consigned to schools that mirror the poverty of their municipalities, who fund schools from monies given to them from the national government. Poorer municipalities have many competing needs and no way of raising their own funds, leaving schools to compete for what little monies are available. Apart from the top 5% of the elite, the other half of Chile’s students attend voucher schools, where the government subsidises the pupil’s education by way of handouts to private schools and interests. This is one of the main demands of the student movement in Chile: to put an end to profiteering from education.
For higher education students, the system of loans guarantee massive indebtedness for graduates, while the economy increasingly threatens unemployment and low wages.
The student led movement is gaining momentum every day. To date events have included marches, kiss-ins, a run-a-thon around parliament, as well as mass street dances and performances. In response, the government has increased its use of repression, using tear gas, water cannons and other vicious police tactics, making hundreds of arrests, and refusing to acknowledge the basic demands of students. But the students have widespread support and on August 24 and 25, the students of Chile will join workers in a national strike.
As teachers and educators we sign this statement as an indication of our solidarity with the students and supporters in Chile for a free and equitable education for all! read more »
