The government attributes what happened to the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Barrio 18 gangs, which, among others, have some 70,000 members in El Salvador.
Since then, a state of exception has been in force in the Central American country to deal with a wave of violence generated by gangs. In ten days, some 6,000 gang members have been arrested, according to the latest official balance.
The deputy of the ruling New Ideas party, Marcela Pineda, pointed out that the approval of the reform seeks “not to restrict freedom of expression”, but to force “to be responsible in the messages that are disseminated to the population.”
The Association of Journalists of El Salvador (APES) immediately issued a statement expressing its “concern” at a “clear attempt at censorship.”
The “gag” reform, as APES described it, “threatens with jail the media and journalists who report on a reality that the current administration” of Bukele “seeks to hide.”
It is a “new tool to criminalize journalistic work,” the text added.
Shortly after the approval of Congress, the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), Pedro Vaca, wrote on Twitter that “the limits to freedom of expression cannot depend on the political anxiety of A situation”.
“In a crisis, human rights standards are much more demanding,” he said, without explicitly mentioning the recently disclosed measure.
Any limit to freedom of expression must be able to prove:
-strict legality,
-legitimate purpose,
-necessity in a democratic society, proportionality and suitability.A crisis does not relax these requirements.
In a crisis, human rights standards are much more demanding.– Pedro Vaca V. (@PVacaV)
April 6, 2022
With information from AFP, EFE and Reuters