Vallejo Questions Reasons for Silva’s Resignation and Urges Kast to Dismiss Rabat Amid Controversy

Original article: Castigaron el video y no las rebajas de penas: Vallejo cuestiona motivos de salida de Silva y exige a Kast destituir a Rabat

«The departure of Undersecretary Silva, the Undersecretary of Justice, primarily stemmed from him recording a type of spokesperson video, an announcement made via unauthorized video by the minister, rather than the seriousness of the actions taken,» stated former government spokesperson Camila Vallejo, as she challenged the true motives behind Luis Silva’s exit from the position amid the crisis regarding the reductions in sentences for individuals convicted of sexual offenses against children and adolescents.

In a discussion with Radio Nuevo Mundo, the former state secretary criticized President José Antonio Kast for retaining Minister of Justice Fernando Rabat in his position, despite the severity of the scandal.

Vallejo accused the justice minister of lying, concealing information, and altering his narrative regarding the situation, and deemed it incomprehensible that the President continues to politically support an authority who, in her view, «has hidden information and provided partial information».

The ex-spokesperson also questioned why the current administration is attempting to shift blame to the previous government of former President Gabriel Boric, arguing that it is Kast himself who must bear the political consequences of the decisions made by the Ministry of Justice concerning the granting of sentence reductions.

«The right course of action is for the President of the Republic to acknowledge the political responsibilities regarding the significant error made, and so far, that has not occurred,» she stated.

Regarding Silva’s departure, Vallejo insisted that it is questionable to consider the reason as being due to him publishing an unauthorized video on social media rather than the signing of the decrees for sentence reductions.

She also pointed out that the criteria applied over the past five years were altered by the ministry following Kast’s arrival at La Moneda, indicating a shift from rejecting requests for sentence reductions to administratively approving them, without waiting for a judicial resolution to mandate it.

For the former minister, the magnitude of the consequences for the victims, their families, and the justice system warrants a response that does not limit itself to apologies from the Executive or the resignation of a subsecretary, in this case, Silva.

In that vein, she warned that the controversy represents a political crisis for the government, but emphasized that its effects extend beyond the conflict between authorities. «It is a crisis impacting the credibility in the system, affecting the victims especially, and from which the President of the Republic cannot detach himself,» she asserted, according to El Mostrador.

Finally, she rejected the notion that Kast’s administration is trying to frame the events as a structural problem within the State, as this approach seeks to dilute the responsibilities of the authorities involved in the signing of the controversial decrees. She reiterated that this political error has not been met with the appropriate consequences and emphasized that the continuation of Rabat in the cabinet is a direct responsibility of President Kast, who — she maintained — must dismiss him.