On January 13, 1824, and by the Real Cédula de Fernando VII, the first antecedent of the National Police was born, the General Police of the Kingdom, the first modern police force, with competences throughout the national territory, with merely police functions and formed by professionals with exclusive dedication, with the mission of maintaining public order and combating crime.
Today, two centuries later, Melilla, like the main cities of the country, has carried out an institutional act to commemorate this historic day with a solemn raising of the flag.
The Delegate of the Government, Sabrina Moh, who presided over the event, in her speech, after reviewing the agents, has conveyed on her behalf, that of the Minister of the Interior and that of the Government of Spain, her most sincere congratulations on this bicentenary and has expressed her best wishes for the present and the future for all those who make up this institution, “which I am convinced will be full of achievements and successes.”
Therefore, it has encouraged them to keep “alive and growing your enthusiasm and sense of duty, your professionalism and dedication and to continue honoring the uniform you wear, as you have done so far”.
The head of the Government Delegation has highlighted the special link that the National Police has created with our country and with our city, which “has its origin in values such as respect, dedication, commitment, loyalty and the vocation of public service that you show every day”.
Something, he stressed, “that has contributed to making Spain one of the most complete democracies in the world, with very high levels of freedom, with rights at the forefront of the most advanced countries and one of the safest states that exist in the entire international sphere.”
Respect and affection
Moh has pointed out that the ties of union generated with the citizens “are evident in the signs of respect and mutual affection that they often give you as a sign of gratitude for your work, which is none other than to guarantee our Rule of Law, ensure compliance with the laws approved and contribute, in a decisive way, to making Spain a safe country.”
The highest representative of the Government of Spain in our city has recalled that the National Police is one of the institutions best valued and most respected by Spanish society. Something, he said, that is due to the sensitivity, efficiency and professionalism with which the men and women who wear the uniform every day “give the attention and assistance that citizens demand.”
“You have achieved great results in all your areas of action”, said the head of the Government Delegation, who stressed that “you are the Police of all and all Spaniards and, therefore, of all and all Melillenses”. And, for this reason, he added, on a day like today that we commemorate two centuries of history, “we must value your efforts to protect our city and our country, pursue crime, help the most vulnerable and face complex situations in your daily life.”
“I can’t think of a better time than one as marked in today’s calendar, to applaud all this time for public service, and in turn to look to the future of this institution, which will undoubtedly continue to grow and evolve in order to continue being useful to Spanish society for much longer,” he said.
Building a peaceful and diverse Melilla
In her speech, Sabrina Moh highlighted the work carried out by the agents who serve in the Superior Police Headquarters of Melilla, to whom she addressed “with admiration and respect and showing, once again, my public recognition of your valuable work”.
Thus, he pointed out that, in a city such as Melilla, with our singularities and the challenges and challenges that the police face, “you have been able to combine efficiency and effectiveness with empathy and a vocation for public service”, and he referred to his work in port, airport and border controls, or to such important actions as ‘Operation Ramo Storage’, related to the drug trafficking of heroin and cocaine or ‘Operation Tarsis’, which has resulted in the seizure of 25,000 psychotropics and which, with both, has reduced the risk that drug use represents, especially, for our young people.
He has also mentioned ‘Operation Cupid’, related to fraud for the acquisition of documentation through fictitious marriage, or the work they carry out in terms of protection and accompaniment with the victims of gender violence in our city, which has translated, in 2023, into a total of 250 attestations and 1,100 irrigation assessments.
To all this must be added the work in cybercrime, actions against terrorism, the permanent presence in prevention, deterrence and response activities that the body gives to the citizen requirements or the conservation that makes “one of our most precious assets, our multiculturalism”. Something, he stressed, “that you forge from the firm conviction of wanting to continue building a diverse Melilla based on a model of peaceful, tolerant and inclusive coexistence”.
For all these reasons, in her capacity as Delegate of the Government in Melilla, she has transferred to the police officers her necessary support and collaboration “to continue working, side by side, to make our city an increasingly safe place”.
During his speech, he alluded to all the agents who preceded them and who, “with their work and effort, not only wrote many pages of your long history, but created the necessary basis of this institution called to have a promising future at the service of our country.” He has also had words of remembrance for all those who lost their lives “defending democratic values and the rights and freedoms of citizens, and whose legacy will always remain in our memory”.
Within the chapter of thanks, Moh has pointed to the example of all the policemen who have reached the retirement situation after a lifetime of public service. “From here our gratitude and recognition, since you are an essential part of this body and the bond that unites you to it, will always endure,” he said. Also to family members and loved ones for the support and understanding they provide to agents.
Finally, he has also had words of recognition for the Armed Forces, the Civil Guard and the Local Police for the collaboration and teamwork that they develop and that, every day, “magnifies you”.
After the speeches of the highest representative of the Government of Spain in Melilla and the Superior Chief of Police, José Antonio Togores, a crown has been placed on the monolith in tribute to the body's fallen. The anthem of the National Police has put the finishing touch to the institutional act.