On Thursday, Chile’s new right-wing president, José Antonio Kast, confirmed that his government is considering using the presidential power of pardon to grant leniency to police officers and military personnel convicted of crimes committed during the 2019 social uprising.

The statement reopens the debate on the state’s responsibility for the repression of the protests that began in October 2019, when millions of people took to the streets to protest inequality, the cost of living, and the abuses of the neoliberal economic model.

During the social uprising, thousands of arrests were made, hundreds of people were injured, and numerous complaints of human rights violations were filed. Various international reports documented cases of eye injuries, torture, and other abuses committed by state agents, leading to legal proceedings and convictions against members of the Chilean National Police and military personnel.

The government and right-wing groups have attempted to justify the measure by arguing that the officers acted in a context of violence and public disorder. However, human rights organizations warn that granting pardons to officers convicted of these crimes could represent a serious setback for justice and reparations for the victims of repression.

For the victims’ families and social organizations, the debate highlights the deep political divisions surrounding the legacy of the social uprising and the role played by the state’s repressive forces during that period.

Dauno Tótoro, leader of Left Voice’s sister group, the Revolutionary Workers’ Party of Chile (PTR) and author of the book “Así mataron en octubre” (How They Killed in October), stated that “Kast is considering pardoning uniformed officers convicted in cases related to the uprising. This cannot be allowed! They just want more impunity.”

Kast estudia indultar a uniformados condenados por causas del estallido. Y en campaña dijo que no indultaría criminales. Parece que la “emergencia” del gobierno de emergencia era dejar libres a condenados por brutales crímenes.
¡No se puede permitir! Sólo quieren más impunidad.

— Dauno Totoro (@DaunoTotoro) March 13, 2026

At the same time Kast made this announcement of impunity for the officials who repressed protestors, he forcefully launched his xenophobic policy against migrants. A joint police operation carried out identity checks targeting exclusively migrants in the heart of Santiago. About 45 people were taken to a police station to have their immigration status checked.

According to La Izquierda Diario de Chile, officers conducted identity checks targeting exclusively migrants who were present at the scene. An official from the Policia de Investigaciones (PDI; Chile’s civilian investigative police force) stated that the purpose of the procedure was to verify the immigration status—both legal and illegal—of those who were checked.

At around 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, after an operation lasting approximately an hour and a half, about 45 people—the maximum capacity of the PDI’s official bus on site—were transported to a civil police station. According to the same official, their immigration status would be reviewed there and the relevant information recorded, after which they would be allowed to leave.

During the procedure, some of the bystanders present reacted by applauding and cheering the police action as the migrants were loaded onto the institutional bus.

As Teresa Melipal, editor of La Izquierda Diario in Chile and member of the Revolutionary Workers’ Party (PTR), points out, “In the face of these attempts to downplay or erase responsibility for the 2019 repression and the xenophobic advances of the Kast government, it becomes more urgent than ever to resume organizing from the bottom up. We must organize in workplaces, schools, and communities; build militant unions, student centers, and independent activist groups capable of confronting the attacks being prepared against workers and the people. We cannot passively wait for the government’s measures to advance or for the far right to continue gaining ground. Only mobilization and grassroots organizing can stop these attempts to impose impunity. We must resume organizing in workplaces, schools, and communities, and strengthen unions, student centers, and activist organizations—without waiting for the attacks from the government or the far right to pass, as this will only embolden them further.

This article was first published in Spanish in La Izquierda Diario on March 13, 2026

The post The New Government in Chile is Already Repressive appeared first on Left Voice.

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