Chile's student protests could undermine president's approval (The Christian Science Monitor)

Santiago, Chile – Francisco Jorqueira, a Chilean student, says his private university is on strike, along with some 180 others across the country, to demand accountability after tuition rose from 3 million pesos last year (about $6,400) to 3.2 million pesos this year.

Mr. Jorqueira's father earns 800,000 pesos a month, meaning that his tuition now amounts to four months of his family's income, he said while handing out flyers for today's march and student strike, which saw an estimated 70,000 demonstrators hit the streets of Chile's capital, Santiago.

Jorquiera is one of thousands of students protesting the state of education in Chile, a movement that is gaining momentum and could turn into a political crisis for President Sebastian PiA±era.

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Students have called for a national student strike to demand an end to privatization and profiteering in education, more scholarships, and increased public support for secondary schools and universities. Loans currently charge 7 percent interest, and the law prohibits students and faculty from having any voice in university administration, Jorqueira says.

A challenge for PineraThe demonstrations add to a year of setbacks for the country's first conservative president since the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet ended in 1990. President Pinera’s approval rating fell to 36 percent in May, down from 63 percent seven months earlier in the wake of the successful rescue of trapped workers at an underground mine, according to pollster Adimark. The public widely opposes the government’s approval of a new dam complex in Patagonia, fare increases for public transport, and rising food prices.

Yet the student protests could be one of the biggest setbacks he faces. The current marches recall the deepest political crisis faced by the last government, under President Michelle Bachelet. Exactly five years ago, students went on strike in a series of actions known as the "penguin rebellion" and held marches with as many as 790,000 participants to protest lack of investment in education, with most of the complaints centering on high-school education.

What do the students want?The demonstrators have both economic and academic demands. They want increased public funding of universities, a year-round bus pass, full scholarships for lower- and middle-class students, and an increased role for the state in technical education, which is now handled by private institutes.

Academically, they want to end the use of a standardized test as the sole method of admission to the best universities. They also want technical institutes to offer liberal arts classes and are demanding guaranteed academic freedom. In addition, they are demanding more accessibility for people with disabilities.

To fund education, some marchers carry banners calling for the nationalization or increased taxation of the private-sector copper mines, which today produce more than half of the metal in this country.

While most demonstrators are peaceful, several student protests have devolved into violence in recent weeks. A march Wednesday ended with police on horseback and in armored vehicles chasing demonstrators around central Santiago. A group of students surrounded Education Minister Joaquin Lavin two weeks ago and began shoving, leading the minister to call for greater civility.

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Yemeni president's health 'improving'

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh (pictured in 2008) was injured Friday in an attack on his presidential compound.President Saleh is in "stable" condition, says the Yemeni Embassy in the U.S.It says the president will return to Yemen "soon after he recovers"He is being treated in Saudi Arabia

(CNN) -- Yemen's injured president "continues to improve" after he was hurt in a strike Friday at the mosque in the presidential compound in Sanaa, the Yemeni Embassy in Washington said Wednesday.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh's "health condition is stable," the embassy said in a press statement.

He was taken to a hospital in Saudi Arabia on Saturday for treatment. He is recovering from burns over 40% of his body and a collapsed lung, a U.S. government official has said.

An Arab diplomatic source with knowledge of Saleh's condition has said that one shrapnel wound was 7 centimeters (2.75 inches) deep.

The embassy said Saleh will return to Yemen from Saudi Arabia "to re-assume his duties soon after he recovers."

At present, Vice President Abdu Rabo Mansour Hadi "is the acting president in charge of the caretaker government during President Saleh's temporary medical leave."

The strike hit Al-Nahdayn Mosque in the presidential compound during Friday prayers, and the assault is under investigation by law enforcement officials and forensic specialists.

An imam and several guards were killed, and other senior officials, including the prime minister, were wounded and taken to Saudi Arabia for treatment.

"The perpetrators of this bloody attack will be captured and prosecuted accordingly," the embassy's press statement said.

Fighting between government and tribal forces has been raging in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, where thousands of anti-government protesters have been pressuring Saleh to give up power since January.

The unrest also has spread to other parts of the country. On Tuesday, witnesses said tribal fighters took control of the city of Taiz in southwest Yemen.

Saleh is unpopular among many citizens but has been a key U.S. ally in the fighting against Islamic militants, particularly al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

For weeks a deal has been in the works for Saleh's departure but it has fallen through. The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, an alliance of Gulf Arab countries, has worked to broker the deal between the ruling party and the opposition.

One Yemeni government official, who has asked not to be named because he's not authorized to speak with the media, said communications between the ruling party and the opposition continues until Saleh is back.

"We hope he'll be back within 10 days," the official said.

As for the presidential palace strike, the source said it's too early to speculate on the details of the attack, which could have been caused by a rocket, a mortar shell or a bomb.

The official also spoke about Zinjibar, a town taken over by Islamic militants in Abyan province, saying government forces are in the process of retaking it.

"Clashes are still happening, but not door-to-door clashes," the official said. "Parts of the city are witnessing gun battles between the militants and security forces. It will take some time to root out the militants without causing heavy collateral damage."

The International Committee of the Red Cross and the Yemen Red Crescent are working to help the people of the country, and the ICRC issued a report on Wednesday that detailed the problems and the challenges of living in the restive land.

"Because of the fighting, it has often been difficult for medical personnel to reach certain parts" of Sanaa, said Jean-Nicolas Marti, the head of the ICRC delegation in Yemen. "Whenever there has been a moment of calm, dozens of people have been calling the ICRC, asking for help transferring the wounded to a hospital and recovering the bodies of the dead."

Marti said Sanaa is no longer the "lively city crowded with people and vehicles throughout the day, and filled with brightly lit shops open until late at night."

"There is now a high degree of tension in the streets," he said. People are living "day by day," stockpiling food and water, and staying in their houses. Men are sending women and children to relatives' homes in safer locations.

"People are in a constant state of alert in Sanaa and elsewhere in the country," Marti said.

"Blasts and gunshots were being heard every day until recently. Everyone was afraid that their home would be the next to be hit by a stray bullet or by something even more terrifying. Although an unusual calm has descended on the city, the nervousness and tension remain palpable."

Many employers have had to close and many jobs are threatened, and electricity has become a rare commodity throughout the country, the ICRC said.

Johannes Bruwer, the ICRC's head of the water and habitat department in Yemen, added that the country "is also in the grips of a long-term water shortage that leaves people feeling constantly anxious and concerned about whether they will have enough clean water at the end of each day."

CNN

Obama to meet Nigeria, Gabon presidents

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan was inaugurated last month amid tension in the west African nation.Obama will meet Nigeria's Goodluck Jonathan on WednesdayHe'll also meet President Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon on Thursday

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama will welcome his Nigerian counterpart to the White House on Wednesday, days after the leader of Africa's most populous nation was sworn in for a four-year term.

President Goodluck Jonathan was inaugurated last month amid tension in the west African nation.

Jonathan is from the majority-Christian southern part of the country. His election sparked violence in the Muslim-dominated north, leaving scores dead.

The White House said the two leaders will discuss regional and global development. Nigeria is a major supplier of crude oil to the U.S.

A day after meeting with Jonathan, Obama will meet President Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon to discuss regional and global issues, the White Hosue said.

Gabon holds the United Nations Security Council presidency in June.

The White House also announced that first lady Michelle Obama will travel to South Africa and Botswana this month.

CNN