The student mobilisation of 2001 (self-styled "Mochilazo") corresponds to the first phenomenon of notorious participation and demonstrations led by high school students in Chile after the transition to democracy. These brief and limited

demonstrations Demonstration may refer to: * Demonstration (acting), part of the Brechtian approach to acting * Demonstration (military), an attack or show of force on a front where a decision is not sought * Protest, a public act of objection, disapproval or d ...

protested against the decline in benefits to school education, such as subsidised transportation fees. The year 2001 marks a milestone in the history of student movements, as a strike of high school students was called and adhered to on April 9, which achieved 80% adherence in the schools of the

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

commune. The strike was summoned in disagreement with the agreement reached regarding the school pass, demanding that the school pass issued in 2000 could be used during 2001, without having to pay its cost again, of 2,500 Chilean pesos. During the day, marches were recorded in

and clashes with

Carabineros The was an armed carabiniers force of Spain under both the monarchy and the Second Spanish Republic, Second Republic. The formal mission of this paramilitary gendarmerie was to patrol the coasts and borders of the country, operating against ...

de Chile. The influence and leadership of the recently founded Secondary Students Coordinating Assembly (ACES), formed the previous year after a division of the Federation of Secondary Students of Santiago (FESES), under the control of the

Communist Youth of Chile The Communist Youth of Chile (, JJ.CC. / La Jota) is the youth wing of the Communist Party of Chile. It was founded on September 5, 1932, and it incorporates young communist activists between the ages of 14 and 28. The JJ.CC has political represe ...

, was visible. In addition, it was considered as a support to the claims of the College of Teachers of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

, which days before had made teacher stoppages for their respective union claims. These last facts allow us to recognize the appearance of the influences of political cadres in schools, and also to foresee differences between social causes and those of political purposes, during the government of

Ricardo Lagos Ricardo Froilán Lagos Escobar (; born 2 March 1938) is a Chilean lawyer, economist and social-democratic politician who served as president of Chile from 2000 to 2006. During the 1980s he was a well-known opponent of the Chilean military di ...

Escobar and the Concertación political coalition, which led him to be president with the support of the

Communist Party of Chile The Communist Party of Chile (, ) is a communist party in Chile. It was founded in 1912 as the Socialist Workers' Party () and adopted its current name in 1922. The party established a youth wing, the Communist Youth of Chile (, JJ.CC), in 1932. ...

. According to the sociologist Juan Ignacio Venegas, these mobilisations should be considered a milestone in the way of conceiving the student organization and the approach to political participation of young Chileans.

References

{{Reflist Protests in Chile

See also

References