To talk about citizen security, the Minister of the Interior, Carolina Tohá (PPD), received this Monday in La Moneda the Senate table, headed by José García Ruminot (RN), who assessed that the conversation had «a lot of coincidence» regarding the legislative «fast track» agreed upon a year ago.
Of the 31 measures prioritized in the package, although the idea was that they would all be dispatched before the end of 2023, there are still eight to be finalized, among them the creation of the Ministry of Public Security and the Victims’ Ombudsman’s Office, as well as the mentioned reform to the Rules of the Use of Force in the actions of the police and the Armed Forces.
In the meeting, which was also attended by the vice president of the Senate, Matias Walker (Democrats) and the chairman of the Public Safety Commission, Senator Ivan Flores (DC), the leadership of the Upper House proposed adding another 16 initiatives to the agenda.
«Fortunately We have had a lot of agreement, we have had a lot of willingness to agree, great will for this agenda to quickly complete its different legislative stages,» he highlighted. García Ruminot after the meeting with Tohá.
«This is not about making laws for the sake of making laws,» he analyzed, «this is about effective legal instruments to combat what we have indicated: terrorism, drug trafficking, organized crime. «That’s what we’re talking about, so that citizens feel more protected, so that citizens feel safer.»
However, he pointed out that «this Government could hardly say that the ‘fast track’ has not been respected in terms of citizen security», reproaching that «it has been they, for example, who have drawn up the Rules for the Use of Force and They have taken away the urgency.»
And deputy José Miguel Castro (RN) stated that «we must understand that most things are not carried out by law, but by making the correct decisions in terms of citizen security. They are the ones mandated to exercise that right that everyone has.» the people. For the rest, There are laws that are not on the ‘fast track’ and that should be considered, such as, for example, clandestine entry into our country as a crime.. But the ideology returns and does not let them advance.»
SPEAKER ASKS TO PRIORITIZE PENDING INITIATIVES
Despite the opening of Minister Tohá, Government spokesperson, Camila Vallejolater stated that «even though we are a minority, we have managed to come up with a very forceful legislative agenda, and particularly in security, but there are still some projects.»
«As a Government, we would say that those who claim to be able to do the most, should be able to do the least, and that At the very least, we could agree to take out the projects that remain pendingbefore adding more legislative agenda if we are still not able to unblock the pending issues,» stated the Secretary of State.
Among the initiatives that remain to be dispatched, Vallejo highlighted «the Ministry of Public Security and the economic intelligence billwhich is key to the prosecution of organized crime and the business that is behind it.»
He President of the PPD, Jaime Quintana, asked to accelerate the same projectsestimating that the creation of a portfolio dedicated to security «puts focus on investigation and coordination of the institutions that have to prosecute crime.»
Regarding the economic intelligence law, the senator stressed that «it is fundamental and we knew this from the beginning: that is, when the project of special investigation techniques was dispatched, which is what today is beginning, little by little, to give results, and allows find those responsible for these heinous crimes and imprison themand that will surely continue like this.»
«Also at that time it became very clear that this project was very necessary to avoid money launderingwhich is what often happens in this type of crime,» the helmsman concluded.
PS DEPUTY REQUESTS FOCUS ON ARMS CONTROL AND NARCOS FUNERALS
In the Lower House, the Deputy Daniel Melohead of the Socialist Party bench, said that «What corresponds first is to finish with what has already been committed» before adding new proposals as requested by the Senate.
«I understand that there are some (projects) still in the pipeline and, without a doubt, we are going to evaluate what other initiatives are necessary,» he continued.
«For example, how gun control is consolidated In our country, I think that is very necessary. We would also like the Government to be able to give urgency to everything that has to do with the narco funerals(since) if one reviews what is happening, for example, in the southern sector of Santiago, this is a reality that is experienced daily and I believe that the Government has to put urgency in these matters, and we are going to collaborate as we have done in recent years,» he said.