According to figures from National Institute of Human RightsBetween October 21 and November 4 of this year, 479 children and adolescents have been arrested, in the context of demonstrations due to the social crisis that is going through our country.

"We find it very worrying that more than 10% of the detainees are minors," he said, Paolo Mefalopulos, Representative of UNICEF in Chile. And he requested information on the work being done by the Directorate of Family Protection in the framework of arrests and complaints of police violence towards children and adolescents.

The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General on Violence against Children, Najat Maalla M'jidHe also expressed deep concern about the continuing violence in Chile and its impact on children. In the Press release The entity acknowledged the efforts made by the Government of Chile to respond to the situation, but emphasized that much more needs to be done to ensure full compliance with international standards on children's rights.

During the hearing on Chile of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR), the Defender of the Childhood, Patricia MuñozHe noted that 174 children and adolescents in the country have been victims of human rights violations, 12 of them hit by bullets, 55 with physical injuries, five with eye trauma.

In a BBC interviewPatricia spoke about what she would ask President Sebastián Piñera for this situation to improve: “I would ask for an instance of direct communication with children and adolescents so that she knows what is happening to them, what they could contribute. The challenge is to stop criminalizing them or assimilating all their behavior to the criminal. ”

Complaints and psychological support

Wich is the way to go? Without a doubt, dialogue is one of the necessary ways to support all children and adolescents who have suffered rights violations. The Ombudsman's Office opened a contact number for complaints of situations of this nature, and relevant information for the containment and support that children need at the moment: 224979600.

In the same way, Foundation for Trust has available the Free Line, number 1515, where children can talk with a psychologist about how they feel. They can also chat if they download the APP directly.