Canada: Talks Over Tuition Increases And Student Strike Collapse in Quebec.

Talks aimed at ending a 16-week strike over tuition increases by students in Quebec collapsed on Thursday evening. The suspension of the negotiations immediately raised concerns that the nightly demonstrations that have sometimes paralyzed cities in the province, particularly Montreal, would increase in intensity. The province's premier, Jean Charest, a participant in the negotiations, said that a ''big gap'' remained between the sides. Student groups had called for a tuition freeze; provincial officials had offered to modify and reduce the increases in tuition. In May, the province introduced an emergency law intended to limit protests, a measure that many human rights lawyers have criticized as excessive. More than 2,500 people have been arrested since students at colleges and universities in Quebec began their strike. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]