SANTIAGO, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- The UN International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) on Monday urged the Chilean government to protect the children during its police raids carried out in the Mapuche region in the south of the country.

    The request was made by UNICEF representative in Chile Cary Sthal after a meeting with Chilean Minister of Indigenous Issues Jose Antonio Viera-Gallo and presidency spokeswoman Carolina Toha.

    "In collaboration with other organizations, we train some Carabineros (military police) agents on the rights of the children and how to avoid affecting them during a raid," Sthal said after the meeting.

    "It is not about having raids or not, but we urge the authorities to protect the children during their actions; there should be different ways to act if there are children present," Sthal said.

    Meanwhile, Chilean Indigenous organizations announced that they will launch legal actions against the Chilean police for causing psychological damage to children and senior citizens during the raids.

    This came after indigenous Mapuche children made a statement condemning an Oct. 16 raid that killed seven children. They required the UNICEF to intervene.

    The Mapuche, making up about 4 percent of the Chilean population, are particularly concentrated in the Araucania region in the south of Chile. The region has since years ago been the scene of a conflict between the indigenous Mapuche people and agriculture companies over issues related to land holding rights.