Sting was accompanied by Eric Clapton, Fareed Haque and Mark Knopfler on guitar, by Branford Marsalis on the saxophone, and with Rubén Blades providing additional Spanish vocals.

Sting explained his song as a symbolic gesture of protest against the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet whose regime killed thousands of people between 1973 and 1990.

[2] Cash Box said that the song is "one of Sting's most powerful tunes, a tribute to the Chilean women who stand in mourning and protest for their missing sons and husbands.

"[3] There are several live versions of this song, most notable from the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute (1988), from an Amnesty International concert (1988) in Buenos Aires with Peter Gabriel and the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo.

On October 13, 1990, Sting played the song at Estadio Nacional in Santiago de Chile (with artists including Jackson Browne, Branford Marsalis, Luz Casal, Sinéad O'Connor, Peter Gabriel, Vinnie Colaiuta and New Kids on the Block).