This archive report was first published on 21 November 2019.
Chile's social protests, which began on October 18, have left a trail of devastation, with 22 people dead and over 2,000 injured, including more than 200 seriously, according to prosecutors.
Patricia Munoz, head of the government agency responsible for protecting children's rights, expressed outrage over the situation, stating that her office had received 327 complaints of fundamental rights violations by children and adolescents.
She specifically criticized the police, citing cases of children being injured in everyday situations, such as buying bread with their mothers, and emphasized that these children were not participating in demonstrations.
"We are talking about children who were not even participating in demonstrations, which makes the police behavior even more serious," Munoz said at a press conference.
As a result, Munoz announced that her agency would take legal action in cases where it had not already been initiated by another agency.
Additionally, the National Institute of Human Rights has filed 384 complaints of human rights violations by security forces against protesters.
Following an outcry over eye injuries suffered by over 200 demonstrators, Chile's police have suspended the use of birdshot against protesters.
