Santiago - More than 300 students were arrested by elite police forces Wednesday in Chile during crowded protests against proposed legislation on education.

At least 100 protestors were arrested near the government palace La Moneda, in central Santiago, which was cordoned off by special police forces.

A further 227 students, most of them minors, were arrested in the northern Chilean city of Antofagasta after occupying three secondary schools as a protest measure.

New Education Minister Monica Jimenez called upon students to cancel their protests, stressing that the government-sponsored proposal is yet to be approved by the legislature.

Protests by students and teachers have become stronger in recent weeks.

However, the government claims the proposal cannot be modified since it is the result of a deal with the opposition.

Official studies note that unequal access to education, health and political participation are at the root of social inequality in Chile.

Only 8 per cent of the South American country's poor get higher education, while 72 per cent of the wealthier population goes beyond secondary school.

At the pre-school level - which according to Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, a pediatrician by training, is at the root of the discrepancies - only 44 per cent of poor children get schooling, while 75 per cent of wealthier kids benefit from it. (dpa)