Girl maimed with rubber bullet released from hospital

SANTIAGO.- Just after 10:00 am today, 10 year-old Kathya Rojas was released from the medical center where she had been treated after losing sight in her right eye after being hit by a rubber bullet allegedly shot by a police officer during public demonstrations that took place on "Día del Joven Combatiente" ("Day of the Young Combatant") in Pudahuel.

The girl was taken from the Clínica Dávila medical center using a wheelchair and wearing a pair of blue sweatpants with a plastic protector over her right eye. Kathya was accompanied by her parents, the Metropolitan Intendent, Igor Garafulic, and her doctors.

Despite the fact that members of the press tried to speak her, the girl did not say a word before she was placed into a vehicle along with her parents and taken home.

As the girl was leaving the medical center, the intendent stated that he, as a government representative, had told her family that he would stay in touch with them regarding her recovery and assured that all possible measures will be instated to determine who fired the projectile.

Meanwhile, Doctor Erika Martínez said that the girl will begin a rehabilitation process on Monday of next week, while doctors evaluate the type of prosthetic she will use. Dr. Martínez also asserted that the girl’s eye remains anatomically fine, but assured that she will not recover her sight in that eye.