the swiss journal New Zurich newspaper (NZZ) analyzes the propaganda around the mega-prison of President Nayib Bukele and how he leads the country in an increasingly authoritarian way.
«The President of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, loves big projects and big shows. Just a year ago, he laid out his plans for the world‘s first Bitcoin City, where crypto businesses will be able to operate tax-free. Plans are on hold due to the cryptocurrency crash.
But the 41-year-old president has long since found a new workhorse: the fight against organized crime in El Salvador. This has currently culminated in the opening of a mega-prison for over 40,000 inmates. From now on, the members of the criminal gangs, the so-called ‘maras’, will be locked up there.
The offensive against the gangs has turned what was once the most dangerous country in the world into the safest in Latin America, Bukele boasted. From more than 6,000 murders in 2015, the number has dropped to less than 500. However, the murder rate was already falling since 2016, three years before Bukele took office. Human rights organizations condemn the repeated extension of the state of emergency, which suspends fundamental rights. Detainees do not have the right to a fair trial. There are also allegations that innocent people have been detained.
Critics point out that Bukele -as was the case with his bitcoin projects- has not allowed any transparency in the bidding process and execution of the works. And they are concerned that he is running the country in an increasingly authoritarian way. The population, which suffered decades of extreme violence, supports Bukele. His popularity ratings are between 85 and 90 percent.”