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Chilean miners' anniversary

Report

Most people in Chile remember where they were when they heard that the miners had been found alive. It's a day that's etched on the national conscience.

The men had been trapped for 17 days. Nothing had been heard from them and most people had given them up for dead.

Then on August 22nd engineers pulled a drill out of the ground and found a splash of red paint on it - a sign of life. Moments later they found a note attached to the drill. "We are all well in the shelter, the 33," it read.

The discovery sparked wild celebrations across Chile. The miners will be remembering that day in private ceremonies in the city of Copiapo.

The government has decided not to mark the occasion formally. A similar anniversary in Copiapo two weeks ago was marred by protests against President Sebastian Pinera.

Relations between the miners and the government have soured somewhat since July, when 31 of the men launched legal action against the Chilean state, accusing it of negligence.

And in Copiapo, some of the workers from the San Jose mine who weren't trapped but who lost their jobs because of the accident have accused the 33 of taking advantage of their celebrity and using it to line their own pockets.

Gideon Long, BBC News, Chile