Miracle or Mirage? Gangs and Plunging Violence in El Salvador Latin America Report N°81 | 8 July 2020 Headquarters International Crisis Group Avenue Louise 235 • 1050 Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32 2 502 90 38 • Fax: +32 2 502 50 38
[email protected] Preventing War. Shaping Peace. Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... i I. Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 II. A Political Tornado ........................................................................................................... 3 III. Back to the Iron Fist? Bukele’s Security Policies ............................................................. 6 A. The Gang Threat ........................................................................................................ 6 B. Traditional Responses and Failed Crackdowns ........................................................ 7 C. The Bukele Government: Innovation and Coercion .................................................. 9 D. Community Action ..................................................................................................... 12 IV. The Political Battleground ................................................................................................ 14 A. Praise and Criticism of Security Policy ...................................................................... 14 B. Increasing Acrimony: