El Salvador's Bukele unveils plan to free up to 50% arrested under state of emergency

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador -- Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele announced a plan to release up to 50% of the people imprisoned under a state of emergency under which authorities arrested more than 90,000 people since March 2022 in a campaign to wipe out violent criminal gangs. The emergency, which was declared after a spike in violence, has drastically reduced the country's homicide rate while also suspending fundamental rights, including the right to be informed of the reasons for detention, the right to access legal counsel and the right to visitation.Human rights groups have condemned the emergency, saying it has led to widespread arbitrary arrests, and they have repeatedly called on Bukele to end the measure. The president has justified the measure as necessary to reign in warring gangs MS-13 and Barrio 18. The president’s plan announced Tuesday night would focus on releasing people who were considered gang collaborators, a blanket term that can include anyone from gang lookouts to people who make extortion payments.“There are many people who have indeed committed crimes, but their crime was collaborating with gangs,” Bukele said. “They deserve to be in jail, but we come from a ...