In the Chilean capital, protesters set fire to two churches, looted a store and clashed with police a week before a referendum on whether to erode a one-sentence constitution.
In television images from Santiago on Sunday, masked protesters were shooting from their smartphones and excited as the spire of the Burning La Ascension Church crashed to the ground. Protesters also set fire to the San Francisco Borja Church, which dates back to the mid-19th century.
The government of the city’s archbishop and president Sebastian Pinera condemned the attacks, including the robbery of supermarkets and other stores.
The semen of La Asuncin Church, before the crowd erupted in excitement.
Photo:
Evan Alvarado / Reuters
“This is an expression of cruelty,” said Interior Minister Vector Perez. He added that police were deployed to protect the Santiago subway, which is a frequent target of vandalism. “Today we should mourn for the acts of violence, but we will face it.”
To mark the anniversary of the start of last year’s mass anti-government protests, about 25,000 people, some with large banners demanding a new constitution, gathered at Plaza Italia on Sunday. The square was the epicenter of last year’s protests, which plunged one of Latin America’s most stable and prosperous nations into chaos, killing more than 30 people and causing billions of dollars in damage to hotels and supermarkets across the country.
They also sought concessions from the government, including Mr Pinera’s announcement of plans to write a new constitution.
The demonstration began when high-school students rushed to unsettled subway stations over small subway-fare increases and took to the streets. It quickly escalated into large protests in which hundreds of thousands of Chileans expressed their dissatisfaction despite years of strong growth and a reduction in poverty over poor health care, small pensions and economic inequality.
The interior of the San Francisco de Borja church in Santiago, Chile, burned down on Sunday.
Photo:
Esteban Felix / Associated Press
Demonstrations were peaceful before dark after violent clashes between youths and police groups formed by the military, who have been accused of atrocities by human rights groups.
Chile’s 1980 constitution-changing referendum, written during the military dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet, has fueled investor uncertainty. The constitution was credited with laying the foundation for Chile’s strong growth, which attracted foreign investors but blamed ordinary Chileans for failing to maintain social security.
A referendum was originally scheduled for April, but was delayed by a coronavirus epidemic that has infected more than 490,000 people in Chile. If it passes next Sunday, Chile will begin a two-year process of writing a new constitution.
Clashes between protesters and police have erupted in recent days as Chileans emerged from a lockdown imposed by the epidemic. In one incident, prosecutors said a police officer pushed a 16-year-old protester off a bridge, injuring him. The officer was arrested and faces charges.
Patricio Navia, a Chilean political scientist at New York University, said a violent clash like the one on Sunday was unlikely to happen anytime soon.
“An example has been set. I don’t expect it to go away, “he said.” It will now become a permanent feature in Chilean politics.
Maolis Castro in Santiago, Chile contributed to this article.
Write to Ryan Dub at [email protected]
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