More than 160 were arrested in Santiago as protesters, mainly students as well as their sympathizers, tried to gather for marches in the capital, and burned tires to block roads, hurled stones and wooden batons.

    Police used water cannons and fired tear gas on the protesters, but no injuries have been reported so far.

    The demonstration, the largest students' action in decades in the South American country, came after Chilean President Michelle Bachelet offered 135 million U.S. dollars as an additional annual fund for high school programs, which the students said failed to meet their demands.

    Last Tuesday, around 600,000 high school students took to the streets to voice their demands, with some 730 arrested and at least 28 injured.

    President Bachelet fired a senior police officer over what she described as "excessive force" against the students, saying their concerns were in line with the government's plans.

    The Chilean government would implement reforms despite the strike, said Bachelet, after discussing the crisis with her ministers on Monday. But she would not made further concessions to the students.

    She added that she would submit to Chilean congress a bill "to amend the constitution," and "to confirm the right of all citizens to a quality education." Enditem