Its two years since a state of emergency was imposed in El Salvador to crackdown on long-running gang violence. The clean-up is regarded as a success, with crime reduced. But critics say innocent people have been arrested. And the seemingly never-ending emergency is turning the country into a police state.

San Salvador

El Salvador has once again extended its state of emergency, initially imposed two years ago in an effort to combat persistent gang violence. This move is part of the nation's ongoing crackdown on criminal activities, which has been deemed a success in terms of reducing crime rates. The initiative has garnered praise for contributing to a decrease in violence within the country.

However, the extension of the emergency law has also sparked controversy. Critics argue that the aggressive approach has led to the arrest of innocent individuals, challenging the fairness and accuracy of the law enforcement process. Concerns have been raised that the continuous extension of emergency powers is pushing El Salvador towards becoming a police state, with enhanced powers for law enforcement agencies at the expense of individual freedoms and legal protections.



El Salvador extends anti-gang emergency law again

Police in San Salvador enforcing a state of emergency, a policy that grants security forces unprecedented authority and resources to fight criminal gangs. The crackdown is the cornerstone of the country's security strategy. This phenomenon is born of one deported gang member, which in 30 years becomes 75,000 gang members. It's because of this responsibility that the state of exception under the leadership of President Nayib Bukele will end only until every member of this terrorist organization is captured. Though controversial, the state of emergency is seen as a success and popular with many Salvadorans. Today, El Salvador has the lowest homicide rate in the Western Hemisphere, a fact that helped Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele win a landslide re-election victory. The price of peace, critics say, has been thousands of arbitrary arrests, indefinite detentions and torture. Salvadoran residents of neighborhoods that have been pacified, like Isabel Gonzalez, say that while she no longer worries over gangs, there's now a different kind of concern. They've captured gang members, but not only gang members. They've taken away innocent people, too, and I don't agree with that. But even the word of God says the righteous will pay for the sinners. Experts have warned that the ongoing state of emergency is not sustainable and that it's transforming the country into a police state. Security officials here in El Salvador tell us that while the gang presence in neighborhoods like this one has all but been eliminated, regular patrols, which include searching people's homes and searching people themselves, will continue to be a vital element in the broader security strategy. Though only promised as a short-term emergency measure, in El Salvador, the exception certainly appears to have become the rule.

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