May I speak to the press office, please?

You want to talk to the CEO, the opposition leader, the president? As a journalist it's easy – you just ask their press representatives. As normal as this might seem in other countries, but Chile has – of course – its own take on the subject. In Germany, it was always more difficult, involved more research or time to get in touch with a grass route organization or lets say your typical Joe Shmoe – just because they are not used to talk to the press every day. They have jobs, families and an interview with a journalist might be a once in a month event for them. In Chile however, I found it far easier to contact, lets say, women who are willing to talk about their illegal abortion than to locate a regional politician. Due to very partial media covering, especially NGOs or smaller organizations are mostly ignored by Chilean radios, TV stations, newspapers or even online magazines. So if they get a phone call from a “gringa” journalist, they usually offer to give you and interview right then and there, or if that's not possible, they come and pick you up, even if it involves a 4 hour drive or offering you a couch for the night. On the other hand, I have tried, really hard, to get in touch with Chile's official elite. I wrote emails and called, went to their offices, talked to the secretary, even to their mothers in law and … nothing! Not available. Out of town. Will call you back later (in Chile that's code for “they don't want to talk to you!”). Maybe the big, rich and usually not very beautiful in Chile are spoiled by the constant attention they receive or they are scared of a foreign journalist actually asking a real and maybe inconvenient question? I can't really give you a clear answer to that because the few officials that I actually interviewed either gave me a power point presentation or a pre-written press statement. My latest (ad-)venture into Chile's political world took me to the congress. A special session was held to vote for one of Chile's mostly disputed bills, “Ley Hinzpeter” (Hinzpeter Law, named after the secretary of interior, Rodrigo Hinzpeter). The official name is Ley de Resguardo del Orden Público (law for protection of public order) and involves a stricter legislation on troublemakers during demonstrations (government version) or a restriction of the right of free expression (everybody else's version). Since the press channels of the congress move slower than the lines at Banco Estado and I have to cover the voting, I decide to go to Valparaíso to watch the session myself. In the morning of the day of the session (after two weeks of being ignored), I finally get through to the PR representative of the congress who assures me, the session is held that same evening and gives me a press accreditation. GRANT! But, of course, there's a catch. Once I get to the congress, I realize that nobody knows of such a session. I am sent from the Senate over to the Congress and back, up to the second floor where the special committees meet – and nothing. At the information counter I am told that these types of sessions are no longer held in Valparaíso but in Santiago. Wonderful. I have to write an article tonight, I came all the way to Valparaíso from Santiago and all this for nothing??? Luckily, there seems to be some wine and cheese event there. Maybe, if I had been in a more investigative mood I would have asked why tax money is wasted on it but right then all I wanted was a glass of wine … or two … or three. I decide to give it one more try though and ask the waiter (?!) about the session. “Oh, yes of course. The special committee meets on the third floor, room 313.” How come a waiter knows more than the officials at the information desk? – I do not even want to know the answer to that question! Right now, I am just happy that I finally found my session. With all my confidence I walk into the room and ask about the Hinzpeter Law voting. “Oh THAT!” finally a senator seems to remember vaguely that there is a bill with that name. “No, we are not voting on that today. We changed the schedule.” - ??? - “Well, it has been postponed.” - ??? - “I think, they (who is THEY???) decided this afternoon (WHEN???) to postpone it.” - ??? - “Maybe, there will be a session next week.” - ??? - “Well, I can't be more concrete. It has been postponed without a new date. So basically we are going to debate the bill whenever the president feels like it.” - ??? - “Just contact the president's press office, they will have more information for you.” - !!! -  

On the streets of Santiago

Evelyn enchants children, Rodrigo works his magic with puppets and Fernando's saxophone charms everybody: Evelyn, Rodrigo and Fernando are artists and Santiago is their stage. Their audience loves them, the authorities not so much. Evelyn remembers how even though she was 8 months pregnant, the police arrested her anyway. Street art is mostly illegal in Chile. An unacceptable situation for the numerous street artist unions in Santiago and the starting point for a series of protests they initiated today in Santiago. “We'll sing and dance until the government hears our cause,” says Fernando.

Only a couple of months ago, in November 2011, the ministry of culture signed an agreement with the artist unions, giving out a total of 164 work permits for street artists. And that's it, the list is full. According to the agreement, only these artists can work on Santiago's pavements. “We are treated like criminals,” says Evelyn, “It's not fair. We only want to work.” A work, that is not as easy-going as many might believe. Evelyn studies theater and is a single mom. On an average day she goes to classes, works on the street, organizes theater workshops, and takes care of her one year old boy. “It's my passion, I wouldn't want to do anything else – but people sometimes forget that being an artist doesn't mean sleeping during the day and partying at night, it really is hard work!” Rodrigo agrees. Without his art, he couldn't have survived. “I am Mapuche and grew up in the south of Chile. When I moved to Santiago my family didn't have any money to support me so I started sewing traditional Mapuche clothes. It was the only way, I could pay for my education.” Now he has come to love his life as a street artists and has developed even his own puppet act. Without street artists like them Santiago's streets would be far less colorful but the government refuses to give out more work permits. To them, more street artists mean more chaos. “I don't think it would lead to an explosion of street artists,” says Claudia Navarro, from the artist union Itinerarte. “All the artists that want to work on the street are already doing it. There is not going to be more of them, they would just work legally.” Since most street artists are gypsies, they do not stay in one spot nor in one city for very long. Yes, street artists come but they also go; a working permit would not create more chaos, it would help regulate their situation. Even with work permits, the authorities can decide arbitrarily if an artist is allowed to work on the street or not. The artist unions have therefore submitted a bill, asking for a regularization of their work situation, allowing new artists to get work permits on the one hand but also offering to pay for them on the other hand. “We are willing to pay for our permits as long as our art is not considered a crime any more,” says Rodrigo. So far however, the bill has not even been discussed in congress. Chances are, it won't be for a while; on the government's to-do-list, art is at the very bottom.  

Carlito or Camila Vallejos Biggest Fan

“185 grams!”

Carlos Alberto Orrego knows his oranges. Just by looking at them he can determine their weight – almost as perfect as the old-fashioned metallic scale he uses. After all, fruits and vegetables have been his business for more than 40 years. Carlos, or Carlito, as his costumers affectionately call him, is a famous figure in Santiago, a city of 7 million and capital of Chile. Stationed centrally in the bustling Plaza Italia, during the last few decades, not only millions of people, but Chile's history has passed right before his eyes.

“The fall of Chile's dictator Pinochet, the big celebrations after soccer games and now the student protests; whenever Chile is moved by something, it happens right here next to me in Plaza Italia.” Of all the events he has witnessed, the recent student protests have fascinated him the most. Specifically, he has been charmed by charismatic student leader Camila Vallejo: “She is so sweet and intelligent and pretty!” he says, smiling and blushing, his eyes to the ground.

When Camila Vallejo was chosen as Chile's Person of the Year in 2011, it did not come as a surprise to Carlos. “It is incredible how she managed as a single person to motivate an entire nation to get out on the streets, march after march, after march!”

Even though he admires Camila Vallejo, he does not like to be called a fan. “Fan is a word you use for teenagers who like Justin Bieber.” He frowns.

However, Carlos’s dedication to meet Camila Vallejo in person proves that say what he will, he is indeed one of her biggest fans.
At first, when Camila Vallejo started to give interviews on TV and her picture made it to the front page of newspapers, she seemed unreachable to Carlos. However little did he know, his stand was only two blocks away from FECH headquarters, where Camila Vallejo runs the student organization.

Terms like ‘FECH’ or ‘student organization’ mean very little to Carlos. But one thing he knows almost as well as his avocados and tomatoes (and oranges) are his customers. Many of them are university students. So one day he ventured to ask a couple of these students if they knew Camila Vallejo. The students told him that they went to university with her and that her office was actually just around the corner.

“Once I learned that Camila had her office so close, I got cheeky and asked if I could visit her, and maybe get a picture of her.” There it is again, Carlos' timid little smile. Every time a student came to his stand to buy fruit, Carlos would ask for Camila. Finally, his persistence paid off; one day he could not believe his eyes, but there she was-- Camila Vallejo herself, standing right in front of him. And although she did not have a picture of herself for him, she had stopped by so that he could take a picture of the two of them together. “I was so flabbergasted; I could not believe my luck!” Now, this picture is enthroned at the very top of his stand, right above the oranges, for everybody to see. He gave it a title: The best day of my life.

In his 40 years as a street vendor, the day when he had his arm around Camila Vallejo was by far the best moment of his life. “She is just as charming and smart and beautiful in person as she is on TV!”

Although for others Camila Vallejo is now “only” the vice president of the FECH, to him she is still number one. He will keep supporting the students' movement in Chile. “It is the students' right to ask for a free education. My nephew studies at a university here, and my brother accumulated a gigantic debt – just so he could pay for his son to have an education. That is not right!”

Carlos hopes that eventually, President Sebastián Piñera's conservative government will give in to the students' demands and reform the Chilean system of education.

Finally, there is one question left: What does Carlos' wife think about his picture with Camila Vallejo? “Ahh...” Carlos dismisses the comment as if waving off flies. “I am not married. And Camila is and always will be the only woman in my life!”

Protests in Patagonia: The ignored conflict

Abusing children, beating up women, burning down houses; horrific, awful and shocking are words that come to mind when we here about such acts. Who would remain indifferent towards such atrocities? But imagine a village was steamrolled without anyone noticing. Imagine a government sent an army to abuse a population and no newspaper, radio or TV station covered it because Demi Moore's and Ashton Kutcher's break-up was considered more relevant for the evening news than something happening in a faraway region like the Chilean antarctic. Imagine— this is exactly what happened! So now what?

“Now we speak up and tell the world!”

“We” are the journalists of the Chilean radio station Radio Santa María in the Patagonian town of Aysén, and the loudest voice of all belongs to Claudia Torres. She is more than the voice; she is the soul of Radio Santa María. If she takes a day off from work, phone wires at the station run hot with listeners asking about her: “What happened, where is our Claudia?”

The people of Aysén adore and admire Claudia Torres; they call her their hero. When you meet her in person though, Claudia Torres is not your typical hero at all. Wife, and mother of two children, she is only 5'3'', and until the recent protests, she was just known as a dedicated journalist and active citizen. About a month ago however, people in all of Chile started referring to Claudia Torres as The Heroine of Aysén.

When the first protests started in Aysén in February, demands of the locals were as clear as they were basic; banners read “Aysén is also a part of Chile”, “Game over for bad schools and hospitals in Patagonia”, “Less cops and more solutions”. Claudia Torres covered it all: she talked to locals about their demands for improving living conditions in Aysén and she interviewed government representatives from the capital Santiago who were hesitant to give in.

When the Chilean government then sent the first tank-load of special police forces to Aysén and most journalists fled the region, Claudia Torres was out on the street with her microphone and recording machine. When police were storming local people's houses, firing guns and burning down buildings, everybody could hear it live on her “open mic” show.

Claudia's mic is always open for call-ins, and the phone never stops ringing. For 14 hours a day, Claudia Torres is on air, informing listeners about current events in Aysén. But more than anything, she listens. Claudia listens to callers talk about their babies being shot by policemen; she listens to women crying because they don't know the whereabouts of husbands after demonstrations. But she also listens to people yelling at her and insulting her. She has even received various death threats.

“I am really scared that something could happen to my children or my husband. However, I am not scared about what might happen to me. I just have to inform and tell the stories that otherwise would remain unheard. The world has to know what is happening in Aysén. This is my moral duty and nobody can stop me!”

The government on the other hand has taken a yo-yo approach to dealing with the events in Patagonia. When locals first started their protests, representatives came to the region to negotiate with leaders of the social movement. They went back to Santiago, without results, without an agreement treaty in their hands, saying the demands were unrealistic. “Stop the protests, then we can see about further negotiations” was the official statement for weeks. But the Patagonians did not stop. The government of president Sebastián Piñera then declared Patagonia to be in a “State of Emergency”, allowing National Emergency Laws to be applied. This meant that several special police forces were sent to the south. Like the politicians, they came back without results but with blood on their hands.

A week ago, Chile's Interior Minister, Rodrigo Hinzpeter, finally gave in and agreed to re-start negotiations. The first treaty was signed by both sides. At last, a success story for the region? Claudia Torres frowns skeptically. “I don't trust the politicians in Chile,“ she says. “Here, citizens cannot expect politicians to take action; we have to take matters into our own hands!”

And with that, off she goes, the Heroine of Aysén, with microphone and recording machine— to report live at the next protest.

The Hard Drive

Personal Information_________________________________________

Name: Marinela Potor

Birth Date: 30. 09. 1982

Born in: Tirgu Mures (Neumarkt), Romania

Address: Pio Nono 93, Depto. 3 A, Providencia, Santiago de Chile

Telephone: 0056 9 56 25 56 79

Skype: marinalapotor

Email: marinela.potor@yahoo.com

Blog: http://marinelapotor.wordpress.com/

Schools_____________________________________________________

1993-1999: Städtisches Albert-Schweitzer Gymnasium Plettenberg (secondary school)

1999-2000: Pawling High School, New York / USA

2000-2002: Graduation at: Albert-Schweitzer Gymnasium Plettenberg (Secondary School); Graduated with 1.6 Average (1.0 being the highest score)

2002-2008: University of Tübingen, Magister (Master of Arts) in American Studies, Comparative Literature, and Ethnology ; Graduated with 1.5 Average (1.0 being the highest score)

Work experience_______________________________________________

1998-2002: Public Library Neuenrade

2000-2002: Westfälische Rundschau (reporter at local newspaper)

2002-2008: Internships at two local radio stations and one local TV station

2003-2008: University Radio Tübingen (hosting shows and working as reporter)

2008-2010: Reporter at Radio Jade in Wilhelmshaven: Qualification as Professional Journalist, Finalist at “Juliane Bartel Preis” (award for journalistic features focused on “women in society”)

2010: Sales & Marketing, International Representation at Escuela Fronteras Santiago

2010: Freelance Journalist (English: “The Bullet”, from Revolver Magazine Santiago; Publication in “Go Nomads Magazine”, German: Geo.de, Junge Welt; Radio Bremen 4 etc., Periodismo Itinerante)

Languages spoken______________________________________________

German (native speaker), English (advanced, native speaker qualities), Spanish (advanced), Romanian (advanced), French (intermediate)

Interests____________________________________________________

literature, music, sports, travel