Security: The Other Diagnosis

El Líbero, February 23, 2024

Political leadership is failing, and it may be the greatest problem we face today. Without guidance, without a system, and without strategic information, it will be very difficult to confront organized crime.

Hooligans, violent assaults in public spaces, and now, the kidnapping of a Venezuelan ex-military officer granted asylum in Chile. Organized crime and common delinquency, all at once. We have a fairly clear diagnosis regarding security. However, we have reflected little on the other diagnosis: the one related to the capabilities of the State.

Cosena, the Pro Security Cabinet, and the legislative agenda are instances through which the government seeks to contain the advance of criminality. Nevertheless, the fundamental question remains: does Chile have the necessary capabilities to combat the new face of crime? We have functioning institutions. The police and the Public Prosecutor’s Office conduct joint operations that have yielded good results, and the Armed Forces have demonstrated their readiness to face any mission assigned to them. So, the State has tools.

If that is the case, why does organized crime continue to arrive and violence consolidate? A fundamental pillar in terms of security is political power. From there, the leadership of security, the definitions of threats, and priorities emerge. From there, it is possible to attempt to answer that question.

And it is precisely in that response where we are failing. It seems that what is overwhelmed is political leadership, not the institutions. The importance of the narrative and its coherence has been discussed, as well as the signals sent to citizens. There is no doubt that it is essential for the former to be structured as well as possible, but it is more important to understand the problem and the multiple dimensions contained in the new security landscape in Chile.

To achieve this, the State requires a national security system. Yes, national. Only in this way will external security and internal security be contained within the same entity. Only in this way can all institutions contribute to the task of bringing peace to every corner of the country.

A national security system implies having a coordinating body that is positioned at a hierarchical level above the other ministries, integrated by all actors and advising the President.

Additionally, it must have an intelligence system involving all agencies, which, led by an organization, collects, analyzes, and provides strategic information for decision-making. It should also have the necessary authority to request information from other State units, building information flows that continuously inform decisions.

Political leadership is failing in that other diagnosis, and it may be the greatest problem we face today. Without guidance, without a system, and without strategic information, it will be very difficult to confront organized crime. For they do have guidance, a system, and strategic information.

Pilar Lizana
Senior Researcher, AthenaLab

Source: El Líbero