About a week ago, riots began in the town of Puerto Aysén, spurred by angry fisherman pushing for changes in fishing regulations. Apparently this has happened many times before and nothing much comes of it because the fisherman are alone in expressing their discontent. But not this time. Citizens of Puerto Aysén jumped on the bandwagon and started complaining about a myriad of issues, from the higher costs of living in the south to the lack of good schools to inferior health care to the HidroAsyén project to...the list goes on. Protesters in the port town seized the only bridge connecting it with Puerto Chacabuco and the rest of the Aysén region, stopping the movement of people, vehicles, and supplies (most importantly, fuel) in and out of the area. Citizens of Coyhaique caught on and starting raising hell in their own town, blocking the road south to the airport and onwards. At first it seemed that the unrest would be short lived, but something has really lit a fire under these people (literally and figuratively) and they want results from the higher-ups. Interestingly enough, so far this has escaped international attention, but here are a couple national news article about these events: Protests plague Chile's Aysén region with number of demands and Protests continue as Chileans in Aysén wait for answers.
So what does this mean for me? Rest assured that I'm safe and there will be no protesters storming the estancia any time soon. But, since there are an increasing number of road blockages and a decreasing amount of available fuel, things have kind of come to a standstill south of Coyhaique. Buses have ceased to run their regular routes, and full fuel trucks are caught on the wrong side of the protesters, unable to deliver their loads to the gas stations. Since our weekly food orders usually come into Puerto Aysén and are trucked down to us, we're having to make do with what we have and can manage to pick up in town. Luckily, Paula was able to make a trip to Coyhaique a few days ago and brought down some fruits and vegetables. Otherwise, I believe we're organizing an air drop of food before the entire CP team arrives on Sunday for a week-long retreat (assuming they can make it down here from the airport...). I'm feeling thankful for the fact that I don't have to leave any time soon, because I would otherwise be worried about catching my flight. Instead, I can content myself with exploring more of the valley, relishing the epic sunsets and the absurd number of guanaco on the front lawn...
(I snapped a quick shot with my computer because that's all I had with me...please excuse the photo quality)
All photography copyright Kendall DeLyser.
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