Sputnik

The newspaper La Jornada
Saturday, August 17, 2024, p. 23

San Salvador., The Movement of Victims of the Exceptional Regime in El Salvador (Movir) yesterday asked President Nayib Bukele to release hundreds of innocent people detained under this measure, in force since March 27, 2022.

There are two very important things here: we were victims of the gangs and now of the regime, because we are being unfairly captured, just because of a phone call, a lie, and that is how they are taking people away.said Alfredo Mejia, deputy coordinator of Movir.

Mothers and fathers of families and members of the Popular Resistance and Rebellion Block (BRP) gathered in the central Plaza del Divino Salvador del Mundo, on the occasion of the second anniversary of Movir.

The activist rejected the idea that the movement defends criminals: he demands an end to human rights violations due to the suspension of some constitutional guarantees for the past 28 months.

I think that the regime must stop this situation. We want fair trials, not the release of criminals, that is a fallacy. Criminals who owe money should pay; we do not want impunity. Movir will continue to move forward, defending the innocent, defending rights.Mejia stressed.

The state of emergency was declared by the Legislative Assembly after a weekend during which gangs committed 87 murders, and the government claims that thanks to the measure El Salvador went from being one of the most violent countries in the world to the safest in the Western Hemisphere.

More than 81,000 people have been arrested since the government took effect as part of its war against the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Barrio 18 gangs, but organizations and the opposition claim that thousands of human rights violations have been committed against innocent victims.