The unsafety remains a central issue on the agenda Uruguay, not only in regards to the electoral campaign itself, but also in terms of policies and actions carried out by the government. In that context, the Ministry of Interior carried out a “historic search in the prison of Maldonado”, while the combat drug trafficking It is still installed in the speech of some pre-candidates.
Sharp objects, drugs, alcohol and cell phones. These objects, in significant quantities, were seized in a “historical search” on Thursday in the Las Rosas penitentiary center, located about 20 kilometers north of Punta del Esteand one of the main prisons in Uruguay.
“With teams from all units of the National Police the largest operation was carried out outside the metropolitan area” of Montevideo, said the Minister of the Interior, Nicolás Martinelli, about the operation through social networks.
“Today, nearly 300 officers participated in the Las Rosas prison, who for several hours carried out an intense and thorough search that involved the 1,150 people deprived of liberty in said establishment,” he added, and stated that “for our management, it is priority to guarantee security and prevent illicit activities both inside and outside prisons.
Although the security portfolio did not mention the reasons that led to the “successful procedure” being carried out, as described by the director of the National Institute of Luis Mendoza Rehabilitation; The truth is that the search had characteristics that are usually observed in countries with other types of conflict and the extension of criminal gangs, mostly related to drug trafficking, such as Brazil either Paraguay.
In that sense, the operation seems to have been a kind of response to the demand for greater actions against the advance of drug trafficking and organized crime in the country, hand in hand with the worrying situation regarding homicides that have been occurring recently. This also occurs a few days after Martinelli himself proposed creating an interdisciplinary working group in the Mercosur to combat emerging threats such as the expansion of criminal gangs on the continent; and that the Ministry of the Interior announced the dismantling of a drug gang in North Malvin.
Drug trafficking, a central issue for some pre-candidates
He tough security talk He has been the favorite of some pre-candidates already recognized for his conservative and even reactionary tone on some issues. Just as the proposal to militarize the streets was put on the table, the senator and internal competitor of the National Party, Jorge Gandini, launched as one of its proposals the creation of a Law of Urgent Consideration (LUC) “anti-drug”, “whoever wins”, as a multiparty agreement.
According to the white candidate, the measures would seek a new management of deprivation of liberty: “shield the borders, air and maritime space; establish a Republican Guard reinforced with the military; give legal support to the military who act in support functions; legal changes to accelerate the closure of drug mouths; anti-narco repression in disputed areas ; changes to the money laundering law”, are listed among other measures. “A political agreement must be made to give support to an administration that is going to have to repress organized crime,” he argued.
When consulted about this, the leader and sole pre-candidate of Open Town Hall, Guido Manini Ríosexpressed his agreement with “any area of dialogue in which we all agree on a State policy on the subject.”
In addition, he recalled that he has also proposed multiparty agreements in this and other areas: “In September 2022 we toured the headquarters of all the political parties and proposed something similar: convene around a table and decide on security once and for all, and on other essential topics such as drugs, debt, national work. These issues require the political system to rise to the occasion; we cannot waste time and discuss a chat about what a candidate did or did not do. We believe that showboating politics like this is diminishing the debate. “It is very important that we all accept the historic moment that Uruguay is experiencing,” he said.
Source: Ambito
