Skip to main content

Teachers, workers, students strike across South America

Neoliberal governments in the region are being hit with a strike wave

Social organizations and trade unions in South America are protesting in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and Peru, mainly to demand more investment from their governments in education, but also against neoliberal policies.

In Argentina, the Union of Education Workers and the Association of Middle and Higher Education called a 24-hour strike to demand a higher increase in salaries in the capital city of Buenos Aires. The unions reject the proposal of an increase of 21.5 percent by the local government and will march to congress to present their demands to the government of President Mauricio Macri. "It is one of the lowest increases in the country and is happening in the richest district," Eduardo Lopez, general secretary of the UTE, said to reporters.

Argentina's inflation was running at an annual rate of 21.6 percent in July. The teachers are demanding an increase of 35 percent, including 25 percent for this year and 10 percent for what they say they lost last year. The marchers are also demanding that the disappeared activist, Santiago Maldonado, be returned alive.

In Chile, the National Coordinator of Secondary Students called for a march in the capital city of Santiago to reject the country's new Public Education Act and demand the municipalities pay the debts they owe the workers. "We will not allow a pact to rob from public education with this law of de-municipalization, which is going to remain in the hands of the next government and a commission of experts," Francisca Flores spokeswoman of Cones said.

As for Colombia, the student community at the Industrial University of Santander organized a large mobilization to reject cutbacks that the government of President Juan Manuel Santos plans to carry out in 2018. The march to protest against cuts in science, technology, and innovation starts at the main entrance of the university campus, located in the northeast city of Bucaramanga.

Meanwhile, in Peru, the General Confederation of Workers and the Workers Union are organizing a march through Lima to the congress, although Peruvian law prohibits any protests close to the legislative branch. The country's teachers, who have been protesting against lack of funds for the past two months have been attacked and repressed by the government of President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski. "The aim of the mobilization is to express solidarity with the unions that have been carrying out protests and strikes, against the anti-popular measures that come from the PPK neoliberal government, which greatly affect the working class and the people," said the unions in a statement.

In Paraguay, the teacher's union confirmed a strike until Friday to demand wage increases, with a march to the headquarters of the Ministry of Education and Science and the Ministry of Finance. They will request "compliance with the law and the implementation of basic professional salary," Silvio Piris from the Teachers Federation of Paraguay, said. The teachers rejected the proposal of the government of Horacio Cartes of a gradual increase of 8 percent for teachers who have been working for more than 20 years. Those who have less seniority will only get 5 percent. The teachers want an increase of 32 percent.

Source, links:

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Netanyahu Is Getting His War Between The U.S. & Iran!

The Jimmy Dore Show   Little progress is being made in negotiations between the United States and Iran over the latter’s nuclear program, and that may be by design. The U.S. is demanding a complete dismantling of Iran’s nuclear enrichment program, which is a non-starter for the Iranians. Meanwhile, the U.S. appears to have reneged on a promise to get a ceasefire and humanitarian aid into Gaza in exchange for the release of the last American hostage, so Hamas — and by extension Iran — feel the U.S. cannot be trusted in negotiations. Jimmy Dore and Americans’ Comedian Kurt Metzger discuss how Israel appears to be orchestrating a U.S. attack on Iran that few Americans have any interest in.    Related: Trump makes key move to beat Biden in their race to start a war with Iran

Trump in SHOCK: Putin & China FLIP His Grave Mistake into STUNNING Victory

Danny Haiphong   Putin & China just gave Trump a rude BRICS awakening, and this bombshell will change everything for generations to come. Geopolitical analyst Ben Norton details the truth about Trump's biggest failure against the rising power of BRICS led by Russia and China, and why the US's role as super power is now in serious question.     Related: Trump's tariffs: A unique opportunity for BRICS and the Global South to fully escape from dollar tyranny

Trump's attempt to divide Russia & China is failing, badly

Geopolitical Economy Report   Donald Trump claimed he would "un-unite" Russia and China, but the US divide-and-conquer strategy is failing. In a meeting in Moscow celebrating the 80th anniversary of their nations' victory in World War Two, Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin reaffirmed that "China-Russia relations have reached the highest level in history" and will "jointly resist any attempts to interfere with and disrupt the traditional friendship and deep mutual trust between China and Russia". Ben Norton explains.     Related:   Why China supports Russia

Inside Iran's Savak torture museum

The Grayzone   Caution: This report contains depictions of simulated violence that may upset some viewers. Max Blumenthal tours one of the most disturbing museums on the planet. Set in Tehran's former Ebrat Prison run by the anti-sabotage unit of Shah Reza Pahlavi's Savak intelligence services, the museum is filled with shockingly graphic exhibits featuring lifelike mannequins recreating the hideous torture tactics deployed to repress dissidents rebelling against Iran's monarchy. Many mannequins on display represent notorious torturers who either fled or were executed after the Islamic revolution in 1979, while others are modeled after famous prisoners locked away in Ebrat like the current Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamanei.  

"Kidnapped in Int'l Waters": Israel Intercepts Gaza-Bound Aid Ship, Detains Greta Thunberg & Others

Democracy Now!   Eleven peace activists and one journalist on board the Gaza Freedom Flotilla ship, the "Madleen," were detained by Israeli soldiers as their ship carrying vital humanitarian aid for starving Palestinians approached Gaza.    The ship was intercepted by Israeli forces in the middle of the night in international waters. Its supplies were seized and communications jammed. The unarmed activists will likely be transported to Israeli detention or "immediately deported," says Ann Wright, a U.S. military veteran who has participated in four Freedom Flotilla journeys and now serves on the steering committee of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. She calls on citizens of countries around the world to push for the activists' release and an end to Israel's war on Gaza. 

14,000 babies could die if aid doesn’t enter Gaza in 48 hours, UN warns

Some 14,000 babies could die in Gaza in 48 hours if aid does not reach them in time, the UN’s humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, told the BBC today. Though Israel said it would allow “basic aid” into Gaza, only five trucks entered the enclave yesterday, two carrying shrouds to help bury Palestinians killed in Israel’s bombs. Others were in Gaza, but were being held by occupation forces and had not reached Palestinians. This was the first delivery of aid since 2 March, when Israel completely sealed the enclave. This, Fletcher explained, is a “drop in the ocean” and totally inadequate for a population of over 2.3 million, and for which no aid has been allowed to enter for 80 days.    “Tonnes of food is blocked at the [Gaza] border” by Israel, Director General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said yesterday. This comes just weeks after the UN agency of Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) warned that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians eat only one mea...

Latest on Los Angeles anti-ICE protests in US

CGTN     Views of downtown Los Angeles where protests against immigration raids entered their third day on Sunday local time.   Protesters clashed with National Guard troops in downtown Los Angeles during the latest wave of demonstrations against statewide immigration enforcement operations that swept across California over the weekend.  

Never, Ever Let Anyone Forget What They Did To Gaza

by Caitlin Johnstone   I will never forget the Gaza holocaust. I will never let anyone else forget about the Gaza holocaust. No matter what happens or how this thing turns out, I will never let anyone my voice touches forget that our rulers did the most evil things imaginable right in front of us and lied to us about it the entire time. I will never stop doing everything I can with my own small platform to help ensure that the perpetrators of this mass atrocity are brought to justice. I will never stop doing everything I can to help bring down the western empire and to help free Palestine from the Zionist entity. I will never forget those shaking children. Those tiny shredded bodies. Those starved, skeletal forms. The explosions followed by screams. The atrocities followed by western media silence.   I will never forget, and I will never forgive. I will never forgive our leaders. I will never forgive the western press. I will never forgive Israel. I will never forgive the main...

They Will Starve You In A Killing Cage Too

by Nate Bear   Starvation is taking hold in Gaza. Twenty-nine people have starved to death in the last few days.  Death by starvation is horrific, the body feeding on itself, first consuming carbohydrates and fats, and then moving on to the protein parts of tissue. Once these are used up, vital organs and tissues start to fail as they aren’t being nourished by essential nutrients. The heart, lungs, muscles, ovaries, testes and brain physically shrink and shrivel. The kidneys start to fail. Eventually the body begins scavenging muscle, including the heart muscle. When this starts to happen, death is hours away, preceded by hallucinations, severe mental disturbances and convulsions. With less stored fat and higher metabolic needs, children die first. Starving parents hold their dying children, at this point nothing but skin and bone, in their arms. Adults can survive anywhere between twenty and forty days without food. Those already weak, chronically ill or immuno-compromised di...