The head of the World Council of Churches has called for an end to the violence in Chile as widespread protests have led to clashes with police in the South American nation.
Student protests which started in Santiago earlier this month over a rise in public transport fares quickly widened to include other groups including trade unions who have since been protesting in a number of cities, calling for a range of reforms related to everything from low wages to healthcare access as well as for the resignation of President Sebastián Piñera Echenique. They are also demanding economic inequality be addressed with Chile, one of the richest South American nations, reportedly having one of the highest rates of economic inequality in the developed world.
At least 18 people have died in the unrest which has been met with a strong police response. Thousands of people have been detained and the government has declared a state of emergency with curfews. In a televised address from the President on Tuesday night in which he apologised and said problems had been “accumulating for decades”, promising action.
In a statement, Rev Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC, called for the violence to stop and for the establishment of a mechanism to address its root causes.
“I want to express our solidarity with the churches and people of Chile in this situation,” he said. “We fully support the churches in their call for adequate responses to the situation by the government and the people, addressing the root causes for this unrest. In this crisis we see the future of democracy and social justice in Chile at stake.”
Churches in Chile and elsewhere have called for peace and are urging the Chilean Government to address inequalities in the nation.
Rev Dr Martin Junge, a Chliean and general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation, is among them.
“Difficult and shocking as this is, there are underlying causes that contribute to this eruption of social rage: inequalities and injustices experienced by the people of Chile. Let this be a time to address the root causes. Violence is not the way to solve the issue.”
