Hundreds of Salvadorans protested on Saturday to demand the release of “innocent” individuals imprisoned during President Nayib Bukele’s crackdown on gangs. The demonstration, which took place in the historic center of the city, was joined by doctors and teachers calling for improved public services.
“Freedom now,” read a banner carried by members of the Victims of the Regime Movement (Movir). Since October, civil society organizations have called for the creation of a budget to support victims of the state of emergency, which was implemented in March 2022 by Bukele’s government to combat feared gang activity.
Approximately 83,000 alleged gang members have been imprisoned under the state of emergency, which allows for arrests without warrants. However, according to humanitarian organizations such as Socorro Jurídico Humanitario, Cristosal, and Movir, around 30,000 of those detained are “innocent.”
The government claims that this measure has drastically reduced homicides in El Salvador, a country once considered the most violent in the world without an armed conflict, achieving a record low of 2.4 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2023. Yet, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and local NGOs have condemned “indiscriminate arrests” and reported more than 300 deaths in state custody since Bukele began his anti-gang campaign.
Doctors and teachers joined Saturday’s protest to demand better public services and criticized planned budget cuts for 2025. Carlos Hinds, a representative of the Medical Association, said that the 2025 budget is being reduced compared to the current year.
“If we already face shortages of medications, long waits for appointments, and overburdened specialists with the current budget… the crisis will deepen further with these cuts,” he warned. Meanwhile, union leader and recently dismissed teacher Idalia Zúniga took to the streets to protest against layoffs initiated by the government.
As of Friday afternoon, “107 workers had already been dismissed” since protests began on October 19, she lamented.
