the military will make checks but they will not be able to fine or arrest
The military that participate as of this Monday in "joint patrols" with members of the State Security Forces and Corps during the state of alarm may "interact" with citizens, but not arrest or punish, according to an instruction issued by the Secretary of State for Security, last Friday, to which he has had access eldiario.es.
The aforementioned instruction specifies that the military will carry out "operational aid" tasks and that joint patrols will always be "under the command and coordination" of a police or civil guard. This is not an obstacle for the military, he adds, to carry out support functions "under the orders of their natural command and under their own responsibility."
The interaction with citizens referred to in the instruction will be aimed, he adds, "to carry out the necessary verifications and checks on public roads." "It will be up to the members of the Security Forces and Corps who are members of each police device to extend, where appropriate, the complaints, reports or acts documenting the alleged infractions," states the Secretary of State for Security.
These "joint patrols" of which the Interior instruction speaks are additional to other tasks being carried out by the Armed Forces, such as disinfection of public and private facilities by the Military Emergency Unit, surveillance of transport and critical infrastructure carried out by other units of the Armed Forces, or the transfer of medical equipment.
In addition, the participation of the Army in these tasks will have a previous procedure that is also detailed in the brief and will take place at the request of the Interior. The governing bodies of the Police and Civil Guard will have to transfer to the Cecor (Coordination Center) of the Secretary of State their request for support and will specify "the objectives and tasks to be carried out by the joint service, as well as the location and date of implementation" .
In the event that the Secretary of State approves, Cecor will request the Ministry of Defense for the support of the necessary military units and the number of military personnel lent will be agreed in the joint design that the Civil Guard or Police will make with the department that Margarita Robles directs, who will have the last word on whether or not to lend to agents, depending on the number of troops available. Robles herself has confirmed at a press conference in Moncloa that the "joint patrols" begin this Monday.
Until now, it has been the Police who have requested support from the Armed Forces for citizen security tasks and the Civil Guard has done so for border control. In a specific case, the armed institute asked the Civil Guard for support in security work around the La Purísima unaccompanied minors center in Melilla.
Asked at a press conference this Monday, the Interior Minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, assured that he is still waiting for the locations in which the "joint patrols" will begin. “All this is a consequence of the needs of the devices we have and the specific requirements and circumstances of each place. Perhaps today and this afternoon some of these joint patrols are already set, "said the minister on Monday.
