Carabineros: the purest vocation of service

Internal and external situations have impacted the work of Carabineros de Chile and undermined its reputation. However, today, we see that prestige being restored.

What does it mean to be a Carabinero? It is a difficult question to answer. Ordinary Chileans, like all of us, who choose to protect the lives of others with their own. What lies behind that decision if not pure love for the homeland? In some moments of the recent past, that love was diminished, but this week we saw it reborn with strength. More than 12,000 applicants for officers and non-commissioned officers presented themselves to join the ranks of that institution which at one point those who govern us today sought to reform. 

As early as November 2021, I raised in this same medium the need to modernize, strengthening the identity of Carabineros de Chile. More than two years later, that identity seems more alive than ever.

The institution that celebrates its 97th anniversary on April 27 has gone through ups and downs. Internal and external situations have impacted its work and undermined its reputation. However, today, we see that prestige being restored. This recovery occurs in a special context and does not necessarily ensure its maintenance over time.

The security crisis has had a direct impact on the lives of Chileans, who are desperately seeking a solution. They looked to the government, to the President, to that leader who should provide reassurance that things are being done well. They did not find it there. Internal differences generated more doubts. But, while that was happening, other Chileans, just like us, went out daily to the streets to restore order and confront crime. They defended their compatriots with their lives, and the losses of their comrades did not deter them. Chileans called for their protection and compelled the government to approve the Naín-Retamal law.

Carabineros de Chile appeared as the institution that, beyond political differences, was willing to fulfill its duty. The motto of “a friend on your path” grew stronger, and those who were insulted during the social outbreak are now applauded.

One swallow does not make a summer, they say, so one should not become complacent. The challenge is to maintain that rise over time.

What does it mean to be a Carabinero? We ask ourselves again. Love for the homeland, undoubtedly, but accompanied by a true vocation of service. Many times, the reward is intangible, but it is felt, and it is felt with every greeting on the streets, with a thank you after responding to a call, or with the hug of a child who regained their security after seeing that Carabinero. In the disasters, so common in our country, when attending to a victim, and in every corner of Chile where often the only presence of the State is a police station far from the hustle and bustle.

According to the oath of service, a Carabinero swears “by God and by this flag, to faithfully serve the duties of [their] profession, to ensure compliance with the laws of the Republic, to guard and defend the lives of all its inhabitants, giving [their own], if necessary.” If that is not patriotism and pure vocation of service, then what is it? May those 12,000 be many more!

Pilar Lizana
Senior Researcher, AthenaLab

Source: El Líbero