Civil society presented report documenting serious human rights violations in El Salvador

According to the report, between 2022 and 2025, 6,889 complaints were received According to the report, between 2022 and 2025, 6,889 complaints were received
According to the report, between 2022 and 2025, 6,889 complaints were received
Con El Mazo Dando 11 años

Published at: 27/03/2025 01:46 PM

Last Wednesday, civil society organizations presented a report that documents serious human rights violations during the three years of the emergency regime in El Salvador, implemented since March 27, 2022.

Among the most common harassment perpetrated are mass arrests, prison overcrowding and deaths inside prisons.

Between 2022 and 2025, 6,889 complaints were received, of which 52% correspond to captured young men, mainly men between 19 and 30 years old.

The emergency regime was approved by the Legislative Assembly at the request of the Government of Nayib Bukele, after a wave of homicides that left 82 victims in March 2022.

It has been extended monthly in order to combat gangs, but organizations report that it has resulted in widespread abuse against people with no ties to these criminal structures.

The report, prepared by organizations such as the Passionist Social Service (SSP), AMATE Foundation, FESPAD, Network of Defenders, Original Blue (AZO) and IDHUCA.

The report details each of the irregular ones. Mass arrests: As of March 2025, there have been more than 85,000 arrests, many of them arbitrary. 50% of the detainees are young people between 19 and 30 years old, while 35% are people between 31 and 59 years old.

Prison overcrowding: El Salvador has a rate of 1,824 people deprived of liberty per 100,000 inhabitants, the highest in the world. Overcrowding in prisons reaches 369.5%, with the exception of the Center for the Confinement of Terrorism (CECOT).

Complaints against state agents: 75% of the complaints received point to the National Civil Police (PNC) as responsible for human rights violations, a figure that increases to 82% when the joint participation of the PNC and the Armed Forces (FAES) is included.

Deaths in prisons: Several organizations have documented deaths inside prisons. The SSP recorded 278 deaths between March 2022 and December 2024, while Cristosal verified 265 deaths through April 2024 and Humanitarian Legal Relief reported 375 deaths through March 2025.

Mazo News Team