For more than 40 years, El Salvador was the literal murder capital of the world. Crime was so intense, that the government reported that in 2015 there were 103 homocides per every 100,000 people. The majority of crime wasn't even reported because of the intimidation of the gangs. Most of the crime was committed by MS-13, A gang created by El Salvador refuges in LA during the 80's. In an effort to reduce crime, many presidents were accused of negotiating with the gangs to lower murders. The gangs controlled nearly 247 out of the 267 provinces and charged extortion fees to leave provinces. The gangs were so prevalent and powerful that they didn't even conceal their crimes with them instructiong witnesses to "hear, listen but dont tell"
Everything changed when a new political entity began to form. The gangs were controlling the majority of political parties, so Nayib Bukele began the "Nuevas Ideas" party. In 2019, He became the first president not to be from either of the two major political parties. As an entrepenuer, business leader and leftist, he began to lead massive changes within the country. Most predominantly of these was the crackdown on gang violence. In June of 2019, Bukele began implementing anti-gang policies to cut them off, consequently the country reached the lowest homocide rates since the end of the civil war: 18 per 100,000. Policies include deploying troops to areas with significant gang presences, increased funding for the police and extreme lockdowns in prisons. On the 27th of march, 2022 the legislative branch approved a special period of exception which increased the powers of the prosecution and gave the government the abilitity to monitor people without a warrant. It also drastically increased the punishments available for gang lords, from 6-9 years to 45-49 years in prison. In addition to this the government also lowered the age at which people could be prosecuted from 16 to 12.
On the 25th of may, the national civil polic announced they had arrested 34,500 people due to arrest quotas. This put immense strains on the budgets for prisons. Bukele denied increasing spending for the quality of life for prisoners claiming they were not important. Currently meals are rationed to twice a day and they are not allowed outside of their cells. Outside of their cells the government began to remove the headstones and graves of known gang members to prevent them from becoming martys. When asked about this the minister of justice claimed it to be like de-nazification, with the government also relating the gangs and nazis many times over. In 2023, a new superprison was announced capable of holding 40,000 inmates, TCC.
Politically, the government crackdowns have been considerably highly approved, 70% approve of the crackdowns and 85% approve of Bukeles leadership. Critics have said his ruthless pursuit of crime has crossed lines with civil liberties. Bukele has been well recieved among the international community, with many in south america copying his agenda in their political campaigns. Personally i'd be very glad to see law enforcement take harder stance, especially in cities with high crime rates like Seattle. Many questions are still remaining concerning the state of the nation, are the governments powers justified in this state of emergency? Is the treatment of prisoners in their detentions and jails fair? What about the lack of civil liberties? Is cereal a soup?
Replies
I think that the how the prisoners are being treated should be changed. In my opinion, the worse the crimes, the worse punishment. For example, if someone goes to jail for murder, there punishment should be worse than someone who say is arrested for having too many speeding tickets.
I agree with you, the worse the crime is, the harsher the punishment should be.
I think that the treatment of the prisoners in jail is how it should be. The prisoners in El Salvador made bad decisions and did bad things and they should be punished for their actions. I think if they arrest the right people that are committing the crimes, I think that El Salvador will be a lot better.
I personally think it may be too strict for the prisoners but possibly it could be the right solution. I think the El Salvador government could take more of a stricter stance on it but it can lead to good and bad things for the community.
Reguarding the suggestion of a government crackdown, I think that we should not go through with one. With the sheer amount of controvercy that surrounds violence form police officers, I think it will only cause a rift and major outrage in our country. However, on your cereal stance, I agree. Cereal is indeed a variation of soup.
I think that the treatment of prisoners in the jails is very strict specially in el Salvador but I think that due to the gravity of the situation it is necessary. The gangs are so big that the prisons are not big enough and there is not enough money to spend on them so I think that they are doing what is necessary.
I think the government powers used in this state of emergency could be justified if the level of crime in El Salvador drops. I think the government of El Salvador taking a harder stance could have both negative and positive effects to the community. If the right people are arrested than a large number of certain crimes will stop happening.
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