More than fear… frustration, distrust, and lack of protection

The police, courts, prosecutors, Public Ministry… all of them have a reason for being: to safeguard security, the former, and to apply justice, the latter. Why, then, does it seem that Hobbes’ state of constant war is resurfacing? 

The young man who died as a result of a citizen’s arrest in La Florida this week was 22 years old. The mayor of the municipality says that the neighbors “acted out of fear” and offered the municipality’s support, but the truth is that an event like this speaks to a deeper problem. In addition to the feeling of fear, there is frustration, distrust, and lack of protection felt from the State. 

It is the responsibility of the State to provide security to the population and to ensure justice where it is due. This discussion is not new: as early as the 17th century, Thomas Hobbes stated that humans lived in a state of constant war, which he sought to control with what he called the Leviathan, to whom the legitimate use of force was entrusted. Today, it seems that this Leviathan is not producing the desired effect. 

The government, the police, courts, prosecutors, Public Ministry… all of them have a reason for being: to safeguard security, the former, and to apply justice, the latter. Why, then, does it seem that Hobbes’ state of constant war is resurfacing? 

The neighbors should not have subdued the young man from La Florida! There are protocols in place to ensure that arrests are made within the framework of the law. It seems that Hobbes’ “wolf” was the protagonist that day. 

It is the courts that are responsible for sanctioning those who detain individuals from security agencies. However, in a context where the population sees impunity rather than justice, frustration takes hold, and distrust in the application of sanctions grows. Regardless of whether the protocol allowed the benefit received by the Tralcal cousins, convicted for the crime against the Luchsinger Mackay couple, the message to the population is that justice is lacking. Therefore, if the State is unable to provide me with the peaceful environment I require, well, I will have to take care of that myself. 

If this mindset persists and citizen actions like the one we witnessed extend, we are heading down a dangerous path. It is time for the campaign speeches that prioritized security and promised to combat crime vigorously to translate into concrete measures. It is essential for the population to see that this issue is prioritized and that the government has a short, medium, and long-term agenda to build a peaceful environment and restore the rule of law in areas where it has been lost. 

The migratory crisis in the Northern Macrozone is not over. Moreover, the state of emergency has revealed how not only migrants enter the country daily. In the south, the state of emergency will end today, and the threats sent by radicalized groups suggest that violence could increase. In the urban areas of the central part of the country, micro-trafficking and homicides show no signs of abating. However, fear, frustration, distrust, and lack of protection must not prevail over the State. We still have time to send the right signals, communicate agendas, and demonstrate to citizens our commitment to security. It is time for that Leviathan to meet expectations.

Ultimately, the best antidote to violence is for the State to fulfill the Social Contract with its citizens by providing security, development, and well-being. 

Pilar Lizana
Researcher, AthenaLab

Source: El Líbero