Piñera apologized and announced a package of measures …

President Sebastian Piñera He presented tonight, from the Palacio de la Moneda, a set of proposals for a "social agenda of national unity". However, in his speech, he first emphasized the form and not the substance, emphasizing his concern for public order and the return to "normality". Despite this, even though he said he had "listened to the people," he dismissed the establishment of the state of emergency and military presence in the streets. reported the site biobiochile.cl

At the same time, he acknowledged his weaknesses with the proposals: "It is true that the problems have accumulated for many decades and that the various governments have not been and have not been able to recognize this situation. in all its magnitude. I recognize and I'm sorry for this lack of vision, "he said.

In this sentence, he reminded the writer and poet Mario Benedetti, who said: "When we thought we had all the answers, all the questions suddenly changed." However, he said that "every problem also means an opportunity. The time has come to recover the lost time, accelerate the pace and act, and urgently, in the area of ​​solutions. "

The announcements include an increase in pensions and the state's contribution to the pension fund; to create a insurance for patients who can not afford their treatment and a reduction in the price of drugs; the creation of a guaranteed minimum income; the cancellation of increases in electricity rates, the creation of a wealth tax, a reduction of the salary of the members of the congress, the creation of a ombudsman's office, an improvement in the distribution of income between poor and rich municipalities and a plan to rebuild the infrastructure damaged by the event.

Before the announcements, Piñera had convened a working meeting with the leaders of the various Chilean political parties. Despite the efforts made, a large part of the Chilean opposition rejected the call. For his part, Interior Minister Andres Chadwick anticipated the president's announcement, which he called "a social agenda proposal to move the country forward". During, the event, which has no definite direction, intensifies with new mobilizations and calls for the strike for the next days

During the meeting, Piñera sought to work on the measures to be taken to solve "the problems of the country", within the framework of the state of emergency in which is practically all the national territory. The president, who said two days ago that his country "was at war", chose to lower the tone of his remarks. "We will explore and, hopefully, move towards a social agreement," he anticipated on Monday, and took this opportunity to convene a "meeting of the government and the opposition, so as to" explore and, hopefully, move towards a social agreement ".

However, his convening power was rather weak. Only the presidents of the Radical Party, the Party for Democracy and the Christian Democratic Party participated in the meeting with Piñera. In exchange, the opposition formed by the Broad Front and the Socialist Party rejected the invitation, while the Communist Party was more critical in considering that they had been invited at the last minute.

"The Socialist Party has decided not to attend. Not because we do not want to talk. But this dialogue must be broad without excluding anyone. And the dialogue that President Piñera invited invites an opposition sector ", said Manuel Monsalve, head of the party office, who also reiterated his interrogation on the military performance of the last days. "What's happening in Chile is very serious. President Piñera criticized President Nicolás Maduro for the same facts that his government is currently observing in Chile on the streets, "he said.

For his part, the president of the Communist Party, Guillermo Teillier, said that, although initially excluded, they had been excluded from the appointment but had been invited to the meeting at about the same time. Interviewed by radio BioBio, Teillier said: "Social movements are not heard and it is better to do it in La Moneda without knowing if there will be clear and precise definitions." For the current member of Parliament, it is necessary for the government to communicate concrete measures if it is really trying to unburden the social epidemic.

Without taking into account the absences of the meeting, Minister of the Interior, Andrés ChadwickHe stressed that he "enormously valued this decision to participate in the search for solutions and his desire to see the country with an impression of height and not of bias".

Although protests that began on Friday against rising metro rates (as a result of the government's definitive suspension), they resulted in a much larger movement, which debated other social demands. The germ of the demonstrations was on the side of the students, who organized the first "mass escape" (jump to the wheel to avoid paying the ticket) on October 7th.

Students have participated in the most massive mobilizations of recent years in Chile. In 2011, the student movement that demanded a deep reform of education put the first government of Sebastián Piñera in a complex situation. However, The demonstrations that erupted five days ago are not led by any sector. Other social sectors, unaccustomed to demonstrating in the streets, have joined the student groups.

On the other hand, the Central Unitaria de Trabajadores (CUT), Chile's most powerful union, and 18 other social organizations have called for strikes and mobilizations for Wednesday and Thursday. The public health worker unions also announced they would hold a protest day. The conflict seems to get worse as the days go by.