Pope Francis received Rigoberta Menchú and Guillermo Whpei, with a focus on the crisis in Chile

The pontiff met with the Guatemalan Nobel Peace Prize laureate and with the president of Fundación para la Democracia to discuss the Latin American situation, with a focus on the Chilean crisis.

Pope Francis today received 2012 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Rigoberta Menchú and the president of Fundación para la Democracia, Argentine Guillermo Whpei, to discuss various issues concerning the Latin American situation, with a focus on the crisis in Chile, Vatican sources confirmed to Télam.

The pontiff received the Guatemalan leader and Whpei at his home in the Santa Marta residence; earlier this month, the two had led a mission to Chile to verify the commitment of the government and the security forces to human rights.

The meeting, which lasted about an hour, focused on the situation in Latin America and on the shared concern over the situation in Chile, following the violent repression by Sebastián Piñera's government of demonstrations across the country, especially in the capital, Santiago.