Protest against the AFP (Chile´s pension system), 24 july, Santiago de Chile. Flickr. Some rights reserved.
A 14 years old kid jumps into a bus of the local transport system in the seaport of Valparaíso, the second larger city of Chile. It happens a day of June 2016. He looks enthusiastic, more than passengers not in the mood to hear a kid doing what sellers, comedians and beggars often do on local buses: ask for their attention to sell something or simply ask for money. The kid is not demanding money, just people’s attention. His goal is different: inform the passengers, citizens of Valparaíso, why his public high school – Liceo Eduardo de la Barra – is occupied and why they are still mobilized demanding for a public education system.
Here is what he says: “…well, the State gives funding according to the average attendance. If during March just 70% of students went to school, 70% of the total budget will be given (to schools). This generates, in schools with a low number of enrolled students or with low attendance, a lack of money to pay salaries, to repair infrastructure, among other things. We propose a base type of funding that is independent from the amount of students. Schools will receive funds for salaries, infrastructure or materials beyond the number of students. Now my classmate Carlitos will explain how the occupation has been working. I say goodbye and thank you very much”.
