Persons from Punta Arenas, Chile on strike after government announcement to increase gas prices
Friday, January 14, 2011
Citizens from Punta Arenas, Chile, the world's southernmost city and capital of the Magallanes and Antártica Chilena Region, remained on strike Wednesday after Chilean President Sebastián Piñera announced an increase in natural gas prices by 16.8 percent, in that region.
Citizens from Punta Arenas and politicians are demanding that Piñera maintain subsidies on natural gas. "We want dialogue, to continue talking in a serious and responsible way about the future of Magallanes," Ena von Baer, the government spokeswoman, said on Wednesday morning.
Piñera's government justifies the increase of the gas price "as a technical decision in response to its declining reserves." Two persons were killed amid the protests in the capital of Magallanes, on Tuesday night.
Sources
- "8,000 Chileans Protest Hike in Natural Gas Prices" — Latin American Herald Tribune, January 12, 2011
- Steven Bodzin. "Chile protests turn deadly as Latin America buckles under rising energy prices" — Christian Science Monitor, January 12, 2011
- Katherine Phelan. "Punta Arenas on strike over a planned 20% gas price hike" — MercoPress, January 6, 2011