At the beginning of August, the President of the Republic, Gabriel Boric, sent to the Senate a document with instructions for the new Ministry of Public Security and Citizen Coexistence.
In the framework of its legislative discussion and according to Third, the Minister of the Interior, Izkia Siches, participated in the Security Commission of the Upper House to settle the scope of the indications presented by the Executive. One of these is civil control over Carabineros and the PDI.
Given this, the Secretary of State provided details of what the role that the Carabineros will play under this new ministry will be.
“Currently, Carabineros is an autonomous entity, and what we hope is to advance to greater civil power over the police,” Siches told Channel 13.
However, he explained that it is not about “such specific things”, but “having operational and strategic plans that today, not only by the mere will of the police, can have a spring with the authority and government of the day.”
In this sense, he pointed to the need to have “technical agents who can give clear guidelines to strengthen and align those actions that the police face on a daily basis in the control of public order, in the pursuit, to advance in efficiency and effectiveness in their role daily”.
In the instance, Siches emphasized that these are “transversal initiatives and also government commitments that were in the different presidential candidates.”
“President Gabriel Boric left it marked on his program and we are complying with it, presenting the indications for a ministry that gives greater capacities, that strengthens the State and its relationship with the police, because obviously we are concerned, as are the citizens. , have more capacities to be able to face the different matters of insecurity”, he commented.
On the other hand, he stressed the importance of dividing the functions of the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security, since, today, the portfolio “is dedicated to both internal government, matters such as Onemi, Senda, migratory matters and, in addition, security”.
“I think we can have a consensus that we need a specialized ministry with all the capacity, to be able to work together with the police,” he assured.
It should be remembered that the project that creates a new ministry to be in charge of public security was entered by Sebastián Piñera after the cross-cutting agreement that emerged after the social outbreak in 2019.
For this month it corresponded that the indications for the new administration were presented, which was specified on August 1. The amendments will be discussed in the Senate Public Safety Committee.
One of the first changes made by the Government of President Boric was the modification of the name “Ministry of Public Security” which added “Citizen Coexistence”.
