AFP :
Demonstrations in Chile against the government of President Sebastian Pinera spread into Santiago’s wealthiest neighborhoods Wednesday, tainting previously untouched enclaves with violence amid the country’s deadly protests.
Hundreds of demonstrators marched towards the Costanera Center, South America’s largest shopping mall and a complex that includes the region’s tallest building-a symbol of the economic expansion that has made Chile one the region’s most stable countries.
A phalanx of riot police stopped the demonstrators, firing water cannons and launching tear gas to disperse the crowds that gathered at the mall.
The demonstrations then spilled into the wealthy Providencia neighborhood, the hub of Chile’s financial sector, where protesters lit fires, battled with police, looted a pharmacy and at least two banks, and damaged government buildings.
“We are living a level of violence and destruction never seen before,” said Providencia mayor Evelyn Matthei.
Demonstrations in Chile against the government of President Sebastian Pinera spread into Santiago’s wealthiest neighborhoods Wednesday, tainting previously untouched enclaves with violence amid the country’s deadly protests.
Hundreds of demonstrators marched towards the Costanera Center, South America’s largest shopping mall and a complex that includes the region’s tallest building-a symbol of the economic expansion that has made Chile one the region’s most stable countries.
A phalanx of riot police stopped the demonstrators, firing water cannons and launching tear gas to disperse the crowds that gathered at the mall.
The demonstrations then spilled into the wealthy Providencia neighborhood, the hub of Chile’s financial sector, where protesters lit fires, battled with police, looted a pharmacy and at least two banks, and damaged government buildings.
“We are living a level of violence and destruction never seen before,” said Providencia mayor Evelyn Matthei.
