The Minister of Social Development and Family, María Jesús Wulf, came out in support of Justice Minister Fernando Rabat over the 56 sentence reductions granted to people convicted of sex crimes, including abuse and rape of minors.
"On this I want to be very clear, this government works to protect children and has done so since day one," Wulf said, as reported by T13. She added that "the Justice Minister has already stated that the government is complying with the law," although the Executive is open to considering legislative improvements.
According to BioBioChile, the Ministry of Justice issued the 56 decrees between March and September of this year. They cover 27 cases of sexual abuse of minors and 29 of rape.
The ministry maintains that case law from the Corte Suprema (Chile's Supreme Court) prevents retroactive application of a restriction introduced in 2022. That rule excluded people convicted of certain sex crimes against minors from this benefit.
However, the decrees were not issued in response to specific orders from the high court. They were an administrative decision by the ministry, based on criteria set in earlier rulings. That is the heart of the controversy.
Former Justice Minister Jaime Gajardo questioned the change in approach. According to him, under the previous administration applications were rejected and reductions were granted only when a court ruling ordered them. Former minister Camila Vallejo, for her part, accused the government of lying and of decreeing reductions without an order from the Corte Suprema.
Wulf was asked several times why President José Antonio Kast's government signed the decrees instead of rejecting them and waiting for the courts. She did not answer directly. She only repeated that the Justice Ministry acted in accordance with the rules.
Instead, she pointed to the previous administration. "I understand that under the previous government there were 276 cases in which sentences were reduced," she said. The sources do not specify how many of those cases were granted by court order and how many by administrative decision, which is precisely the distinction Gajardo raises.
The minister also did not commit the government to sponsoring a bill that seeks to bar people convicted of rape and sexual abuse of minors from accessing these benefits. "The Government will always be willing to improve the law, and this is something that involves the President of the Republic," she replied.
What she did announce was a different initiative. This Friday the Executive will submit a bill against child sexual exploitation in protective care residences, part of the Plan Chile Cuida a los Niños (Chile Cares for Children Plan). "We are seeing that there are girls in the residences, adolescents, who are being approached by criminal gangs," Wulf warned.
