Milei’s security proposal raises human rights alert

Buenos Aires. The government of far-right President Javier Milei has sent a bill to Congress to allow the armed forces to participate in internal security, in the fight “against terrorism,” in the control of people and vehicles that may be considered suspicious, and to carry out “arrests in flagrante delicto.”

In addition, it contemplates the creation of a crisis committee, which, together with other recent measures by the Ministry of National Security, set off a red alert in human rights organizations, under the scrutiny of the current administration.

Regarding the crisis committee, it must classify the situation as “terrorist actions that aim to frighten the population and endanger life, freedom, independence, sovereignty, integrity or self-determination.” This was announced by presidential spokesman Manuel Adorni, today while Milei maintains that his government proposes military reconciliation, and steps are being taken to free the military detained for crimes against humanity, which do not have a statute of limitations and at a time when remains of people who disappeared during the past military dictatorship continue to be found.

The project determines that the crisis committee may order the armed forces to carry out measures such as “patrolling, control of persons and vehicles, operations of checkpoints at fixed or mobile points” and “providing security to permanent and non-permanent installations in specially determined areas and for a limited time and arresting in flagrante delicto.”

The actions of the armed forces in such situations must be authorized by the governor or governors of the affected areas. In these cases, the use of force will be governed by the same terms used by the five national security forces, and internal security operations are expressly authorized in this area.

This determines that there will be a representative of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Planning and Control Center of the Undersecretary of Internal Security of the Nation and indicates that the actions of the armed forces in this type of situations must have the “authorization of the governor or governors of the affected areas.” And in these cases “the use of force will be governed by the same terms and conditions in force for the national security forces, with the carrying out of internal security operations in this area being expressly authorized.”

If the military must use “material means of coercion in a deterrent or effective manner, they must do so in a rational, progressive and proportional manner.” Their actions “will be classified as fulfillment of duty and therefore not punishable under the terms of article 34 of the Penal Code.”

This means that the constitutional article that prevented the armed forces from participating in internal security, which was imposed after the last bloody military dictatorship, will be deleted. It is doubly serious because in addition to their historic role being to defend national sovereignty, they will now not be able to be tried.

Together with the announcement of the Artificial Intelligence Unit to carry out cyber patrols imposed by the Minister of National Security, Patricia Bullrich, this means intervention in private life, control of telephones, computers and others through which they can obtain all types of communication and create “profiles” of “suspects” which leads to raids and ensures “enabled” political persecution.

Consulted by La Jornada, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, Nobel Peace Prize winner (1980), warned that in light of the serious situation the country is experiencing, these new dictatorial “decisions” are being added, which attempt to erase all that had been achieved in terms of rights and “the path to peace.”

“This is serious and very dangerous for all the people when national sovereignty is already in danger” and pointed out the need to prevent these projects from being voted on in Congress because “they will allow violations of all rights” and of the progress we had achieved and that the world supported and respected.”