The Congreso Nacional (Chile's National Congress) on Wednesday passed the Reglas de Uso de la Fuerza (RUF, Rules on the Use of Force) bill for police and military personnel. The Cámara de Diputadas y Diputados (Chile's lower house) approved the Comisión Mixta (joint committee of both chambers) report in the morning, and the Senado (Chile's upper house) ratified it in the afternoon.
According to Emol, the report received 111 votes in favor, 23 against and five abstentions in the Cámara. The votes against came from the Frente Amplio (FA) and the Partido Comunista (PC, Communist Party). Socialists Andrea Macías, Daniel Manouchehri, José Antonio Rivas and César Valenzuela abstained, as did Consuelo Veloso (FA).
Before the vote, the Democracia Cristiana (Christian Democrat) caucus met with the Minister of Security, Martín Arrau. After that meeting, the DC deputies leaned toward supporting the bill.
In the Senado, according to La Tercera, the report was approved by 29 votes in favor, 15 against and one abstention. The Socialist Committee announced constitutional objections, a step that leaves open the possibility of challenging the provisions before the Tribunal Constitucional (Constitutional Court).
The bill creates a common legal framework for the use of force by Carabineros (Chile's national police), the Policía de Investigaciones (PDI, Chile's investigative police) and the Armed Forces. It sets criteria of gradation, necessity and differentiation, regulates the escalation of force and defines the duties of officers.
The most disputed point was proportionality. Emol lists it among the criteria in the text. However, Senator Beatriz Sánchez (FA) said the final text replaced that principle with one of reasonableness. "A use of force can be reasonable and still be excessive", she said.
Senator Andrés Longton (RN) defended the change. He argued that a police officer must react "in a thousandth of a second" to a potentially lethal attack. According to Longton, the law keeps carabineros from hesitating to use their weapon for fear of ending up arrested.
Socialist Juan Luis Castro questioned two matters: the military rule on lethal weapons and the criminal liability of police and military personnel. Over those points, the PS announced its opposition and the objections.
Senator Claudia Pascual (PC) criticized the Comisión Mixta for removing provisions on the prohibition of torture and the protection of children and adolescents. The justification was that they were already covered by other laws.
From the governing coalition, Deputy Luis Pardo (RN) said officers who use force in the line of duty will be presumed innocent. Until now, he said, many carabineros were removed from their posts and lost their pay while under investigation.
Arrau called the approval "a very important step". He noted that the week had been marked by the deaths of two carabineros. He compared the expected effect to that of the Naín-Retamal law, the 2023 statute that strengthened police self-defense.
The bill began in 2023, under the government of Gabriel Boric. It is the second law passed under the Executive's Agenda against Organized Crime and Terrorism. The first, which extends the flagrante delicto window from 12 to 24 hours, was signed into law on Tuesday by President José Antonio Kast.
According to Arrau, once the law is published, the police will have to adjust their operating protocols on the use of potentially lethal force in the cases set out by the law.
