Chile students clash with police over feared cuts

Chilean students protesting feared education cuts by President Jose Antonio Kast clashed with police in Santiago on Thursday.

Police used tear gas and water cannons to stop protesters marching on La Moneda presidential palace. Protesters threw stones, sticks and bottles at security forces.

At least six people were arrested.

The demonstration came a day after Kast announced unspecified spending cuts in his 2027 budget bill. The details of his first draft budget are not yet known, but thousands of students protested what they called “Pinochet's education system,” referring to late military dictator Augusto Pinochet.

Kast said in a television address Wednesday that he could increase spending by 1.5 percent next year and maintain free higher education for more than 600,000 students. He said spending would focus on unemployment, which stands at 9.5 percent, and on security amid a rise in violent crime.

Kast took office in March after campaigning on a security crackdown and spending cuts modelled on the austerity policies of Argentine President Javier Milei.