The deputy said that the preventive detention against Mayor Daniel Jadue, the decision to change preventive detention to house arrest for criminals from the Aragua Train, the postponement of the formalization of the head of Carabineros, the Hermosilla Case, the resolution regarding former General Fuente-Alba, and new revelations of political operations in favor of judges, “show that the institutions are not working as well as some pretend.” The legislator reiterated that the measure imposed on the mayor “is absolutely and totally disproportionate. Being disproportionate, it becomes arbitrary” and emphasized that “the fundamental rights of Daniel Jadue” were affected. The human rights lawyer also indicated that in the demonstrations of solidarity with the mayor “there is no affectation to democracy or to the Judicial Power.”
Valparaiso, March 14, 2018. Deputy Carmen Hertz assumes the presidency of the Human Rights Commission of the Chamber of Deputies. Raul Zamora/Aton Chile
Hugo Guzman. Journalist. “The Century”. Santiago. 6/7/2024. It is claimed that the demonstrations of support for Mayor Daniel Jadue by the Communist Party, citizens and other organizations affect the autonomy of the Judiciary and the functioning of democracy.
That is something absolutely false that has been attempted to be installed, like so many other fallacies and defamations. Social leaders, citizens, Communist Party militants, and those who decide to support Mayor Daniel Jadue, have every right to be in the square outside where he is being held, and that does not mean pressure of any kind. There is no affectation to democracy or to the Judiciary, in any case. I would like to remember, for example, that in 2002 when we had to argue in the Court of Appeals of Santiago the removal of immunity of (Augusto) Pinochet for the crimes of the Caravan of Death, even though that hearing was closed, the hallways were full of Army officers and in particular of former commanders in chief supporting the dictator, and outside there were many protesters who supported the removal of immunity of the dictator. I do not remember that any political authority has claimed that what was happening in the hallways of the Courts and outside was a demonstration of hooligans.
Can we define this as political persecution, or is it a very severe precautionary measure, or are both situations present in this case?
This preventive detention order is absolutely and totally disproportionate. And by being disproportionate it becomes arbitrary. It cannot be claimed that Mayor Daniel Jadue is a danger to society or that there is a risk of flight. These two grounds for the judge’s decision are, in my opinion, inadmissible from the point of view of what a judicial decision must be that is consistent with the elements in the trial. That said, we cannot ignore the anti-communism and hate speech that has multiplied in recent times against our party, which during the 112 years of its history knows well what persecution is, knows it to the point that they have tried to physically eliminate us. We have been discriminated against because we represent the popular movement and the working class. No one can ignore these hate speeches or say that they do not exist, and these hate speeches and defamatory campaigns against our party undoubtedly permeate the whole of society, because they are also replicated by the hegemonic media. I would say that in this atmosphere of defamation and fallacy that exists towards communists, is where we say that there is political persecution.
Regarding Jadue’s situation, it was also stated that there is a violation of human rights.
Of course. When the presumption of innocence is violated and the most intense precautionary measure is decreed, which is preventive detention for a person without any previous investigation – because that was made clear during the formalization, that there are no previous records that merit a precautionary measure of this nature -, of course the fundamental rights of Daniel Jadue are affected. Moreover, people know, on paper, that it is absolutely discriminatory to decree preventive detention for Daniel Jadue and that the former mayor Cathy Barriga is dancing on TikTok, and that when they are going to check her house arrest, she says that she does not open the door because she was sleeping or because she does not have or cannot feel the doorbell. People see that and process it, as appropriate, they understand that there is a double standard.
There is still controversy. Authorities said that the courts should be allowed to act, that these issues are resolved in the courts and not in the streets, and they questioned the demonstrations. Within the ruling party and on the right, it was insisted that this is a matter for the judiciary and does not merit any other type of view.
Well, we have always said that we hope that institutions work. But unfortunately, in the reality of this society, where, in my opinion, the existence of a full democracy is at least debatable, this is not the case.
There is talk of a “legal war” in the mayor’s case, which is known internationally as “lawfare,” and which has been denounced in the case of several left-wing leaders in Latin America.
As a parliamentarian, I cannot make that assessment, but that assessment, what is known as “lawfare”, has been experienced by a number of leaders of the left and progressivism in Latin America. Dilma Rousseff, Lula Da Silva, Cristina Kirchner, Rafael Correa. It is a reality that has been used, it has been brought to court, against Latin American leaders, to remove them from their positions.
What happens to you when you see headlines like “Jadue imposes his terms on the PC”, that all this strengthens the party president, that this affects the internal situation of the Communist Party?
It is very unpleasant, because it is one more lie. These covers are intended to continue with rabid anti-communism and, in addition, with this campaign of harassment and siege, without ceasing, against Daniel Jadue. It is one more fallacy, where there is a medium that lends itself to this, such as La Segunda, which is not strange because La Segunda has lent itself to quite damaging and I would say criminal montages, such as calling political prisoners that the dictatorship made disappear “rats”. The hegemonic media have taken care of that, they try to install a supposed internal contradiction and everything is a lie. fake newsa lie, a typical post-truth. They do not understand, and if they do understand it, they will not place it, that the Communist Party, being a historical party, one of the values it has is loyalty to its comrades, especially when we are fully convinced of their innocence, which is the case of comrade Daniel Jadue. We know very well what loyalty is.
What political context is generated around this situation of Mayor Daniel Jadue? It is not over yet, there is still a long way to go.
Of course, there is still a long way to go and logically the right and the media continue their campaign, ignoring the fact that Daniel opened all his bank accounts and emails a long time ago, and that is not mentioned anywhere. It is an investigation that has lasted three years and curiously it is activated during an election period. That is the context in which they are operating, a political context where the stories of the extreme right are being imposed, among other things, because of the weakness with which they have been positioned. The right and its henchmen impose a narrative and a story that is extremely dangerous, and it is dangerous for sectors that are not right-wing to adhere to this narrative, whether by action or omission. This narrative must be confronted, fascism must be confronted, the right and the extreme right must be confronted and denounced.
We witnessed the preventive detention of Daniel Jadue, the fact that dangerous criminals from the Aragua Train are allowed to leave prison by paying bail, the date for the formalization of the head of the Carabineros, Ricardo Yáñez, is changed and postponed, the former head of the Army, Juan Miguel Fuente-Alba, is declared innocent, versions continue to appear of how positions of National Prosecutor or members of the Supreme Court are being politically negotiated, what is the status of the Judiciary, what is happening with judges?
By the way, all these revelations point to the fact that the institutions are only half-functioning. They actually decree the release of members of the Tren de Aragua, and then when they revoke the measure they cannot find them; when the details are known, chats that (Mario) Desbordes, who now wants to be mayor, exchanged with a minister of the Court of Appeals who has been accused; not to mention all the audios of (Luis) Hermosilla, whose whereabouts nobody knows; the change of the date of the formalization of General Yáñez when he had already been given months to prepare the formalization and then, due to obvious pressures, his appearance was postponed for five more months; the case that everyone saw of Fuente-Alba. And so on and so forth. All this that is becoming known, what it shows is that the institutions are not working as well as some pretend. I think that this institutionality is working halfway and that is dangerous for democratic values, for democracy, without a doubt.
