Human Rights Watch — El Salvador: Widespread Abuses Under State of Emergency

When I visited El Salvador many years ago, I was struck by the country’s beauty and the strength of the people.  But violence and political instability has long been prevalent in the small country.

Today, Human Rights Watch released a report:

“Salvadoran security forces have committed widespread human rights violations since the adoption of a state of emergency approved in late March 2022, in response to a peak in gang violence, Human Rights Watch and Cristosal said in a joint report released today.

The 89-page report, ‘We Can Arrest Anyone We Want’: Widespread Human Rights Violations Under El Salvador’s ‘State of Emergency’ documents mass arbitrary detention, torture and other forms of ill-treatment against detainees, enforced disappearances, deaths in custody, and abuse-ridden prosecutions. President Nayib Bukele’s swift dismantling of judicial independence since he took office in mid-2019 enabled the abuses.”

KJ