Chile Announces Construction of New High-Security Prison to Combat Organized Crime
Chile has announced the construction of a new high-security prison to tackle the growing problem of organized crime, which has left 16 people dead in Santiago since the weekend. The prison, which will cost nearly $100 million, will house 500 inmates and will be built in the metropolitan region, which has been affected by a wave of insecurity linked to organized crime.
President Gabriel Boric’s New Strategy
Chilean President Gabriel Boric has ordered the construction of a new special high- and maximum-security facility to effectively control criminal leaders of organized gangs. The new prison is part of a new strategy against organized crime, which has been linked to violent crimes involving gangs such as the Tren de Aragua.
Increased Violence in Santiago
Santiago has seen a surge in violence since the weekend, with four men and a woman killed and six people injured in a shooting that occurred during a party on the outskirts of the capital. The victims were reportedly foreigners.
Boric’s Anti-Crime Policy
Boric has decided to toughen the anti-crime policy in response to the recent wave of violence. He has announced the creation of a specialized force of gendarmes to monitor high-security prisons and will send a project to Congress to speed up the construction of the new prison.
Different from the Salvadoran Model
Boric has made it clear that he will not adopt the Salvadoran model, where tens of thousands of prisoners are held in a mega-prison under the watchful eye of police and military. Instead, he has pledged to prioritize state control and human rights.
Military Deployment and Intelligence Efforts
The government plans to strengthen its state intelligence apparatus with police, prosecutors, and gendarmerie, and to reassign personnel who were performing administrative duties to surveillance tasks. A contingent of 500 recently graduated police officers will be assigned to Santiago to help combat crime.
Calls for a State of Siege
Some lawmakers and government supporters are calling for a state of siege to be declared in the metropolitan region, which would allow the deployment of soldiers on the streets and restrict the right to assembly. However, the Minister of the Interior and Security, Carolina Tohá, has rejected this proposal, but has not ruled out the participation of the military in combating crime.