Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Chilean counterpart on UN reports of (a) torture and (b) other human rights violations by Chilean state agents.

The UK Government shares the concerns of the UN about events that have occurred in Chile. Our Ambassador in Chile has talked with representatives of the Chilean Government to express our concerns about the violence witnessed during protests and about reports of human rights abuses by state agents. We welcome the Chilean Government's acceptance of the report and its recommendations and the Chilean Government's assurances, in public and to our Ambassador, that allegations of human rights abuses will be investigated fully, and that, if appropriate, perpetrators will be prosecuted. Our Embassy in Santiago remains in close contact with the Chilean authorities and will continue to monitor the situation.