After President Nayib Bukele's "State of Exception" went into effect in 2022, El Salvador suspended many civil liberties, including due process, to mitigate widespread gang violence. This decision has caused many citizens to be unjustly arrested and tortured. Amid this, the safety of women and girls has worsened, with growing instances of femicide and gender violence. Women and girls' fears of gang violence are morphing toward fears of violence and abuse by the government's widely deployed soldiers and police.
Compiled from: Julia Zulver and María José Méndez, "El Salvador's "State of Exception" Makes Women Collateral Damage," Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, May 4, 2023.