What I fear most is power with impunity. I fear abuse of power, and the power to abuse.

Allende’s line distinguishes ordinary “power” from power insulated from consequences (“impunity”). The fear is not simply that authority exists, but that systems—legal, political, cultural, or domestic—can protect the powerful from accountability, enabling coercion, corruption, and violence. By repeating the idea (“abuse of power” / “the power to abuse”), the quote stresses how impunity becomes a self-reinforcing mechanism: once someone can act without penalty, the capacity to harm expands and normal restraints erode. The statement aligns with Allende’s recurring concern with authoritarianism, gendered violence, and institutional complicity, framing accountability as the essential counterweight to authority.