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An investigation carried out by the Center for Justice Studies of the Americas (CEJA), belonging to the OAS, revealed a number of deficiencies in the judicial system Chilean regarding investigations and the role of the Carabineros in them during the social outbreak of October 18, 2019.
The report “Evaluation of the Chilean justice system in the face of human rights violations that occurred in the context of social protest” determined that there are determining factors for the Prosecutor’s Office to initiate investigations such as the “pressure from the media or through social networks by the citizens “, according to The Mercury.
In addition, “general non-compliance” with the principles of officiousness, timeliness and completeness was detected in the “investigations of serious human rights violations.”
The agency indicated that currently only 178 of the 8,827 investigations have been initiated by the Prosecutor’s Office, which responds to a “non-observance of the obligation to start the investigation immediately” and that there are no reasonable deadlines for these, since “after 14 months, there are only defendants formalized in less than 1 percent of the cases” .
CEJA, which carried out the study with the support of the University of Chile and the Foundation for Due Process, explained that there is a “weak role” of the Public Ministry regarding the collection of evidence.
COMPLAINTS AGAINST CARABINEROS
Regarding the Carabineros, the agency pointed out that “until now the criminal action has been directed almost exclusively towards the perpetrators, mainly lower ranks” of the uniformed police and pointed out that “One of the most critical elements in the functioning of the criminal justice system is the role that the Carabineros has played Chile, a body to which a large majority of the agents investigated for serious human rights violations belong (92.8 percent of the total complaints registered by the Prosecutor’s Office) “.
“Delays have been identified in the delivery of information requested by the Prosecutor’s Office, obstructions to investigations, improper use of disciplinary procedures for delaying purposes or intimidation of witnesses, something that undermines the effectiveness of the investigations directed by the Public Ministry, “they highlighted.
