Yahoo News Chile protests: Hundreds of demonstrators blinded by riot police’s shotgun pellets
At least 230 Chileans have lost sight after being hit in the eye by shotgun pellets fired by riot police during street clashes in the past month, medics have revealed.
At least 50 will need prosthetic eyes. “This means the patient doesn’t only lose their vision, but they lose their actual eye,” said Dr Patricio Meza, vice president of the Medical College of Chile.
The average age of the patients is 30. Eyes have also been damaged by rubber bullets, Dr Meza said.
He added: “We are facing a real health crisis, a health emergency.”
Chile’s National Institute of Human Rights said it condemns violence by protesters but this does not justify “the indiscriminate use” of shotguns by police.
At least 24 people have died and thousands have been injured since protests started a month ago over a hike in public transport fares.
The unrest has now broadened to encompass grievances over low wages, the high cost of living and social inequality.
The crisis was raised at last night’s Latin Grammy Awards in Las Vegas, when Chilean-Mexican singer Mon Laferte, left, dropped a coat from around her shoulders to expose the message: “In Chile they torture, kill, and rape.”
Chile’s police chief said he will fit armed officers with bodycams and deploy human rights experts on the streets after heavy criticism of their handling of the protests.
