Explore the main aspects of the National Public Security Plan presented by the President

The picture shows the President, Gabriel Boric, and the Crime Prevention Undersecretary, Eduardo Vergara, addressing the Director General of the Carabineros (Uniformed Police), Ricardo Yáñez, at the Government’s First Public Security Council. 

Today the Government presented its new National Public Security Plan following its firm decision to directly address one of the most important concerns for citizens.

The Plan was described at the first meeting of the Public Security Council chaired by the President, Gabriel Boric, in Arica. The meeting involved the participation of the Interior Minister, Izkia Siches, and the principal judicial, prosecution, law enforcement and public sector authorities involved in security issues in Chile.

The National Public Security Plan proposes more than 33 specific measures that will strengthen institutions and governance, covering public safety, crime prevention, information availability, protection and support for victims of crime, prosecution of organized crime, weapons control and the recovery of public areas.

Minister Izkia Siches explained that the plan was based on a diagnosis built in close collaboration with municipal mayors. “It responds to territorial priorities such as border crimes in northern Chile, robberies with violence in urban areas, trends in drug trafficking networks in northern, central and southern Chile, the alarming increase in crimes involving firearms, and it introduces measures that address domestic violence.”

The President explained that this new plan updates existing plans and brings them in line with the current situation: “We must update it now, because the country has changed a lot and crime has changed. As I have said throughout this tour of Arica, we will not allow crime to continue to grow.”

“The war on crime also involves crime prevention, the recovery of public areas, and that is tremendously important for us (...). Organized crime is not welcome, we are going to pursue them and we are going to hit them where it hurts the most. We are going to hit them when they move money, in their organization. We are going to improve our investigative techniques, and I would like to congratulate the Carabineros (Uniformed Police) and the PDI (Investigative Police) for dismantling various gangs or factions,” said the President.

Finally, he delivered a message to the community explaining that “as a Government we are working hard and we will address the issue of crime without inhibitions, as a State priority in a universal, inter-sectoral manner that involves all institutions, and we hope to count on support from all political parties and social organizations, as they are all very important.”   

Explore some of the main aspects of the Plan

Administrative and legislative matters

These include creating the Security Ministry, which will begin processing during July, progress with reforms within the Carabineros, reform of the Municipalities Law to strengthen the role of municipalities with respect to security matters, promote the Private Security Law and create a new National Public Security Policy that establishes the respective country plan for the next 10 years.

Crime prevention

The aim is to progress towards a minimum common crime prevention standard in all municipalities throughout Chile, to reduce inequalities between municipalities regarding financial, operational and infrastructure issues that affect crime prevention and security. Therefore, a National Municipal Security System has been created as a stable support mechanism for municipalities, aimed at strengthening their capacities.

Police resource redistribution 

Police resources will be redistributed. A Strategic Action Center for Homicide Prevention will be created to strengthen coordination when addressing this issue. Operational working groups will be created for public-private security coordination, and gender equity principles will be incorporated into security solutions, among other matters.

Improvements in crime information

Measures will be introduced to improve information on crime, and “Crimes of Greater Social Connotation” will be revised and updated with new criminal typologies and specific analysis groups. The National Urban Citizen Security Survey (Encuesta Nacional Urbana de Seguridad Ciudadana, ENUSC) will be modernized and improved.

Victim protection

In terms of human right and victim protection, the Comprehensive Support Service for Victims of Crime will be created, the number of centers for victims of crime will be increased, and services for victims of domestic violence will be expanded.

National Policy against Organized Crime

A National Policy against Organized Crime was created to combat these organizations, disrupt their networks, confiscate their assets and destroy their logistics. The financial intelligence system will be strengthened and inter-sectoral coordination will be improved.

Weapons control

A weapons control plan with 7 dimensions is proposed, which covers strengthening criminal prosecutions, inspecting weapons and ammunition, creating weapons and ammunition traceability systems, improving control over weapons held by the State, strengthening border controls and financial intelligence, which entails improving stakeholder information records. Each branch of the armed forces will establish a register of its weapons and ammunition, and the precautionary protocols and weapons disposal procedures will be reviewed.

Public order and recovery of public areas

The plan includes several measures governing public order and recovering public areas, with law enforcement and criminal prosecution of gangs and criminal organizations involved in smuggling and illicit trade in public areas.