The accident at the INBA that left 35 injured led to the revival of the Safe Classroom Law, whose application of the measure has been avoided throughout the Irací Hassler administration.
The explosion in the IBarros Arana National Internship (INBA), which left 35 people injured, unleashed a series of questions about the management of the mayor of Santiago, Iraqi Hassler (PC)regarding the effects of his policies and management of the crisis and violence in emblematic high schools, considering that during his entire period in the mayor’s office the Law has not been invoked Safe Class.
The seriousness of the events once again opened the debate on the measures that the Municipality of Santiago has taken in educational establishments, which for a long period of time have experienced violent episodes as a result of demonstrations, which are related to the demand to improve infrastructure conditions.
A scenario that further intensifies the criticism of Irací Hassler, who this weekend will seek re-election in the 2024 Municipal Elections.
Under this context, and after this serious accident that took place at the INBA, the community leader issued a brief statement through her X account, where she sent “strength” to the families and maintained that “We hope that it will be investigated as soon as possible and that the full rigor of the law will be applied. “We are with the educational community at this sad moment.”
Irací Hassler’s fierce rejection of Aula Segura during her tenure as mayor of Santiago
Irací Hassler from the beginning expressed his rejection of Safe Classroom. In fact, during her tenure as councilor she harshly criticized her predecessor Felipe Alessandri and opposed checking students’ backpacks.
In July 2021, in the first stage of his command, he maintained that Alessandri “generated a reduction in the education budget, he worried about criminalizing, discrediting the educational communities and generating projects together with the former Minister (of Education) Marcela Cubillos , as Safe Classroom that only came to generate greater confrontation, and tremendous abandonment and administrative apathy, which we have seen especially now that we had to take over.”
During his tenure as mayor of Santiago, there have been various episodes with incendiary devices in the premises. However, none of them have changed the municipality’s position on invoking Safe Class.
For this reason, every time an event of this nature occurs, Hassler becomes the target of various criticisms. In fact, They have accused her of instructing that the Safe Classroom Law not be applied in community establishments. Along these lines, the director of the Darío Salas High School, Lilian Vincentaccused of being persecuted for applying said regulations.
Given this, the community leader quickly came forward and stated that “never” had he instructed “not to use the current regulations”which was supported by the Comptroller General of the Republic, which established that “it was not possible” to verify said instruction and that the evidence presented in the complaint alluded to the idea that the mayor had of ending the aforementioned law, which was prior to assuming office.
“End of the Safe Classroom policy and criminalization of students. We will promote democratic and participatory resolution of conflicts,” Hassler said during his municipal campaign.
Under this context, the communal authority defended itself in Zero Tolerance, where it assured that “there is a policy, a logic that is changing in the commune of Santiago, What is not understanding an entire educational community from criminalizationbut rather to separate very well those facts that constitute a crime, of violence, that require persecution by the State, particularly the police and the Prosecutor’s Office, from what is dialogue with the educational community.”
To which he added: “it is up to us to address a problem that is profound, from a perspective that manages to separate what is involved in addressing situations that are crimes, which has to do with the use of incendiary devices, with the burning of public transportation, situations that put people’s physical integrity at risk. And not with this, criminalize an entire educational community that wants to strengthen public education, improve its educational establishments.”
Regarding the application of Safe Classroom, each director has the autonomy to define the appropriate strategy to resolve conflicts with students. But, During the current administration it has never been applied, In contrast to the administration of Alessandriwhere it was resorted to 76 times to said law.
To argue this, the Hassler administration has pointed out that academic and non-punitive tools have been adopted, such as Internal Regulations for School Coexistence (RICE).
According to La Tercera, as a result of the application of the RICE, a hundred processes have been opened related to very serious or serious offenses, which have led to expulsion and cancellation of registration. In addition to this, complaints have been filed for violation of other laws that affect the educational community or school coexistence.
The health status of those injured after the explosion at INBA
This Friday at 12:00 p.m., the Ministry of Health (Minsal) updated the health status of those injured as a result of the explosion at the INBA.
“Regarding the events that occurred at the INBA educational establishment, the Ministry of Health reports that, of the initial 35 people affected, there are no deaths; 23 are hospitalized, of them 2 in extremely serious condition and 8 in critical condition“, they maintained from the Minsal.