The director of the National Institute of Human Rights (INDH), Consuelo Contreras, -elected by the councilors on September 5- addressed what her management will be at the head of the organization. In this sense, she hopes to bring human rights closer to the citizenry, indicating that they do not know their DD.HH.
Radio Bio Bio he consulted Contreras about the focus of his administration. He indicated: “I hope that it is given by bringing human rights closer to the inhabitants of the national territory. That people, in general, know human rights, that they feel interpreted by human rights, that they feel that the INDH is an institution that is for the protection and promotion of the rights of all those who inhabit the national territory”.
The social worker pointed out that “in the surveys we have, national human rights surveys, most of the population does not see that the institute is the one that protects their rights. There is no closeness with the population, there is no… people do not know either your human rights, you don’t know what we mean when we talk about human rights.
Let us remember that Contreras had previously assumed the leadership of the INDH. Specifically, between 2018 and 2019, temporarily. She was succeeded by Sergio Micco.
“Train police officers on human rights.”
The director of the INDH stated that “the Carabineros must be trained in human rights, the police, because Investigations also acts in crime control and persecution.”
“You have to train them in human rights matters in such a way that they know the standards that they should not cross. Collecting complaints, not discriminating, not torturing, are issues… You do not need to torture for an interrogation, you cannot torture, it is illegal, it is violating the law to torture for interrogation,” he added.
Likewise, he pointed out that “an issue that everyone knows is that organized crime has entered the country, the Chilean police have never confronted organized crime, they require a different training adhering to human rights and that is important.”
“The other time I took a class at the Carabineros Specialties School, in the rights training course for human rights instructors, and when they asked me what to do, I told them (that) rule one in matters of human rights is to do no harm,” continued Contreras.
“We must find a way to control public order and control crime that is not the first shot,” he emphasized.
Management of Sergio Micco
Contreras also spoke about the management of his predecessor, Sergio Micco. “Sergio Micco is a director of the current council, and on that council we are colleagues; on that council we are all equal, therefore it is not up to me as director of the institute to evaluate its management, it is up to the council, and the council has not done that exercise,” he said.
“I can say that I did not vote for Sergio Micco for director and something that I said to him, that’s why I can say it, and I said it in a council meeting, I think that in the most critical situations of the institute Sergio did not side with the victims, and siding with the victims is risking it for the victims, I think that is the role of a human rights defender,” he said.
