In his speech at the event, Gajardo addressed in particular the challenges that countries in the region face in terms of penitentiary matters. “I think that we all have, to a greater or lesser degree, the same challenges. We have prison overcrowding, difficulties with security and problems with social reintegration,” said the official, who warned that organized crime in the region used these weaknesses of the State to grow, and many criminal gangs emerged precisely from the penitentiary systems.

Gajardo reported that Chile is working to create 15,000 new vacancies in prisons, by 2030, to reduce overcrowding and have a maximum security system for the most dangerous inmates.

The Undersecretary participated in the meeting of representatives of justice and security institutions in Latin America and regional organizations to analyze the second phase of the Assistance Program against Transnational Organized Crime (Paccto 2.0), which emerged as part of the agreements reached at the summit of the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (EU-CELAC), held in July 2023, with the aim of building an alliance between the two regions to address the problem.

Javier Samper, director of Paccto 2.0, explained to Prensa Latina that the program was expanded to the Caribbean countries and one of the axes is the fight against the economic dimension of organized crime. “We have a very large team of experts on issues such as drug and arms trafficking, the struggle against environmental crime, asset recovery, cybercrime and prison security,” he said.

Samper reported that representatives from Latin American and Caribbean countries and observers from organizations, such as the Ibero-American Association of Public Prosecutors, the Police Community of America and the Conference of Ministers of Justice of Ibero-American Countries, are participating in the event.

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