El Salvador’s lawmakers have granted a request by President Nayib Bukele for the 24th consecutive one-month extension of an anti-gang emergency decree.
The vote by congress late Friday means that by March 27, the country will have spent a full two years under the decree, which suspends some rights.
Bukele has used emergency powers to round up 78,175 suspected gang members in sweeps that rights groups say are often arbitrary, based on a person’s appearance or where they live.
But rights groups have expressed concerns about abuses inside El Salvador’s prisons, and say that innocent people are being caught up in sweeps targeting the notorious violent street gangs.
The gangs’ power was strongest in El Salvador’s poorest neighborhoods, where the state has been long absent.
They were a drain on the economy, extorting money from even the lowest earners, and forcing businesses that can’t or won’t pay to close.
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