Original article: Presupuesto 2027 borra Calles sin Violencia y traslada recursos al Plan FOCO: Tohá apunta a “marketing político”

2027 Budget Removes Calles Sin Violencia Program, Redirects Funds to FOCO Plan: Tohá Criticizes «Political Marketing»

«If the purpose is not to close the program but merely to rename it, it would be a very poor and petty case of political marketing,» accused former Minister of the Interior and Public Security, Carolina Tohá, regarding the controversy surrounding the elimination of the Calles Sin Violencia Program in the 2027 Budget proposed by José Antonio Kast’s government.

According to available information, this program, created in April 2023 during the administration of former President Gabriel Boric as a coordinated strategy to combat violent crimes and homicides, required 13.441 million pesos in funding for 2026 to operate under the Subsecretariat of Public Security next year, but this allocation is no longer included in the budget proposals.

In parallel, the resources associated with this policy were redirected significantly to the FOCO Plan, which will take its place. The budget document indicates that FOCO would increase from 12.575 million to 26.766 million pesos, reflecting a 112.8% increase.

The allocation does not suggest a complementation between the two programs but an explicit replacement: «the Calles Sin Violencia Program is replaced by the FOCO Plan,» the document states. This definition has raised warnings from Tohá concerning the direction of the security strategy.

The former minister defended the legacies of the program and outlined its pillars. «The Calles Sin Violencia Plan was a central part of the strategy that allowed for the reversal of the homicide increase. It includes four axes: weapons control, criminal prosecution with Organized Crime and Homicide Teams (ECOH), targeted investment in critical neighborhoods, and increased police presence in areas with higher violence,» she noted in a message published on her account on social media platform X.

«The new budget discontinues it,» she questioned.

In light of this measure by Kast’s administration, the former Secretary of State emphasized that «good policies should be reinforced, corrected, and improved, not eliminated».

Elimination or Renaming?

From the Subsecretariat of Public Security, officials responded to media reports about the end of Calles Sin Violencia and stated that «there are no cuts, nor is the Calles Sin Violencia Plan being terminated.»

They argued that the plan «has been reformulated and is now called the FOCO Plan, maintaining its funding and continuity into 2027.»

«We have strengthened its design and measurement to address violent crimes that concern the public with greater efficacy,» they stated in a message published on X.

The exchange of statements opens the debate about whether the change is technical or communicative. While Tohá refers to it as political marketing, the Subsecretariat claims it maintains funding and continuity under a different name.

However, according to the project budget text, Calles Sin Violencia disappears as an allocation and FOCO concentrates the funds for 2027.