Chilean Congress approves extending for the 12th time the state of emergency and militarization in the southern part of the country

The Chilean Congress approved today to extend for the twelfth time the state of emergency and militarization in the southern region of La Araucanía, as well as the provinces of Arauco and Biobío, due to the escalation of violence in this zone.

The action backed by the Executive will govern for another 15 days after being voted on Monday in the Chamber of Deputies and later in the Senate.

The initiative, approved by 24 votes in favor, 6 against and 3 abstentions, was based on “the acts of violence that are experienced in that area and that continue to affect public order, the life and physical integrity of the inhabitants and workers of those regions”.

From the Executive they pointed out that the state of emergency “has promoted inter-institutional coordination between the police, the Armed Forces and the Government, which has made it possible to deter the occurrence of violent events and disorders.”

The parliamentarians also asked the Minister of the Interior and Public Security, Carolina Tohá, to emphasize the urgency of moving forward to improve the situation facing the north of the Andean country in terms of security and migration, they said.

Tohá assured the congressmen that the greater presence of weapons on the northern border is linked to the arrival of criminal gangs.

“During the pandemic, the drug trafficking market expanded. Both factors come together today. We are going to reinforce the border with more surveillance points with more thermal cameras,” said the authority.

In this context, the minister explained that the aim is to protect the northern border and border routes with military force, together with a bill that improves the prosecution of organized crime in general, through a national policy that will be announced this week.

On May 16, the Chilean government decreed the application of a constitutional emergency state of exception (EECE) in southern towns, which allows the deployment of police and military, who are granted greater powers.

Since then, the measure has been extended in order to contain the problems associated with organized theft of wood and the conflict that the State has maintained for decades with the native Mapuche people and forestry companies stationed there.

With information from Xinhua