The president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, joked on Saturday that he could send inmates from his mega-prison to France, after they were represented in a show at Paris Fashion Week that his government claims “glorifies criminality.” Mexican-American designer Willy Chavarría presented a show on Friday in Paris in which he had several tattooed men kneel, wearing white T-shirts and shorts.
The clothing is similar to what is worn by inmates of the Terrorism Confinement Center (Cecot), the maximum-security prison built by Bukele to imprison gang members and a symbol of his war against the maras. Cecot also holds 252 Venezuelans deported by the administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump, accused of being members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang, although no evidence has been presented.
“We are ready to send them to Paris as soon as we get the green light from the French government,” Bukele quipped in response on X to a video of Chavarría’s presentation, showing the models kneeling with their hands behind their backs on a red carpet. El Salvador’s Presidential Press Office, in another message on the same social network, stated that the fashion show “paid tribute to criminals imprisoned in Cecot.”
It added that the Salvadoran leader’s message represents a “firm stance against the attempt to glorify criminality.” Since March 2022, Bukele has maintained an offensive against gangs under a state of emergency that allows arrests without a warrant.
Thanks to his anti-gang crackdown, which has reduced homicides to historic lows, the president enjoys great popularity, though the state of emergency has been criticized by human rights organizations.
Under the state of emergency, about 86,000 people have been detained for being alleged gang members or accomplices, of whom around 8,000 have regained their freedom for being innocent, according to the government, though humanitarian groups say they remain under surveillance or in legal proceedings.
We’re are ready to ship them all to Paris whenever we get the green light from the French government. https://t.co/nN54hHgEd9
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) June 29, 2025
