Chile: food aid promised before winter randomly distributed

Text by: RFI Follow

Chilean President Sebastian Piñera had promised to deliver 2.5 million food parcels before the start of the austral winter, which begins this Sunday, June 21. An announcement made in mid-May without much preparation. And in the face of the hunger riots that have broken out in the country in recent weeks, the government has tried to speed up the delivery of this food aid, until the last minute, at the risk of delivering these packages a bit at random.

Publicity

With our correspondent in Santiago, Justine Fontaine

Food aid trucks in front of wealthy houses near Santiago. Deputies who were taken aback to receive a cardboard box of essentials ... Testimonies of this type have multiplied in Chile in recent days.

Ana Jimenez, 24, received several pounds of pasta, rice, soap this Friday, while she and her companion have an above-average job and salary in Chile. "  One of our neighbors told us to go down because they were distributing food parcels in the building, " she says. They just asked for my name, apartment number and ID.  "

Many poor families received nothing

However, at the outset, the government announced that food aid should benefit the most disadvantaged third of the Chilean population. Despite this promise, Nelly, 78, and the three other families with whom she lives, have received nothing. They live in a very poor neighborhood on the outskirts of Santiago. "  And it's not just us," laments Nelly, " it's our entire block, and the one after that too." So the whole neighborhood is angry!  "

The problem is repeated outside the capital region. So far, less than half of the food aid announced has been delivered, despite the promise of the Chilean president .

► Read also: Coronavirus: Chile implements a 12 billion dollar recovery plan

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• Chile
• Food
• Poverty
• Economic crisis
• Coronavirus

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