Chile rocked by clashes over fishing quotas

Chilean police fired tear gas and water cannon Wednesday as they battled with hundreds of fishermen who threw stones and burned tires to press for greater catch rights, leaving at least 15 officers and a protester hurt.

Clashes were reported in the port city of Valparaiso, and in the regions of Coquimbo and Maule.

Valparaiso's police chief General Patricia Vasquez said seven police officers were injured in the standoff, one of whom was hospitalized with serious head wounds.

One among the protesters, who barricaded streets with flaming tires and threw firecrackers, was also hurt. Three were arrested.

Police fired tear gas and used at least three water cannon to disperse the protests, which Vasquez termed "very violent" and lasted several hours.

In the region of Maule, south of the capital Santiago, clashes with police wounded eight officers and led to the arrest of five protesters, officials said.

The demonstrators burnt a police vehicle.

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In the Coquimbo region in Chile's north, fishermen also took to the streets, demanding that congress adopt a bill boosting artisanal fishing rights.

The fishermen blocked the Pan-American Highway, which runs the length of Chile, with burning tires.

The protesters accuse the Senate of holding up the bill, which gives artisanal fishermen a bigger share of the catch quota, particularly of hake.

The bill was adopted by the House of Representatives and is now being examined by the Senate Finance Committee.

Miguel Angel Hernandez, president of the Federation of Artisanal Fishermen of the Valparaiso region, accused the Senate of trying to reduce the artisanal catch allocation.

"What we hope is that the bill is passed immediately," he told AFP.

Source: AFP