The Ministry of the Interior has several thousand vests that are expired since last year and that they are being used: there are about 20,000 police and security officials who must carry them and it is estimated that about 15,000 of these accessories are for replacement.
The previous administration of the Ministry of the Interior began to manage in 2019 the purchase of 9,000 units of the Chinese march Xinxin, with a unit value of US $ 259, rounding the purchase at about US $ 2.33 million.
The problem is that, although the acquisition was advanced from the previous government, it was stopped by the new leaders and finally rejected. As published the dailyOn March 3, 2021, the Association of Officials of the Maldonado Police Headquarters (Sipolma) warned that there was an “excessive amount of expired bulletproof vests in use” which puts the lives of officials at risk. A few days later, the late former minister Jorge Larrañaga rushed to announce that 8,000 vests had been purchased, but the total expired by then was already 15,000: there were 7,000 to be replaced.
Evidence indicates that a bulletproof vest has a five-year useful life and must be renewed after that period has elapsed in order for the individual using it to remain protected. After being defeated, it gradually loses its ability to stop bullet impacts. The aforementioned newspaper indicated that there are several brands currently circulating in Uruguay, among which Xinxin, Taurus, Modelwork and Iverfix stand out.
MI does not provide data
The police officers filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Institution and the Ombudsman’s Office (INDDHH) regarding the expiration of the items on February 26 of this year, particularly pointing out the risk due to the amount that has expired in Maldonado.
The INDDHH asked the ministry for data on the measures they had taken to resolve the situation, and from the portfolio they assured that they had requested the data from the Directorate of the National Police. The terms of the order prescribed and there was no response. The Maldonado police union reiterated the demand to the Ministry to remove expired vests “immediately” from circulation and to replace them with equipment in good condition that does not put the lives of the police at risk.
