The State of Exception in El Salvador: Year Five

Hearing Notice

Please join the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission for a hearing on the human rights impact of the ongoing state of exception in El Salvador. 

In March 2022, following an explosion of gang-related violence that resulted in 62 homicides in a single day, President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador requested, and the national assembly approved, a state of exception which government officials claim affects the length of administrative detention of individuals linked to criminal structures and the interception of their communications, but which many human rights organizations claim suspends fundamental rights. In the four years since, the Salvadoran legislature has extended the state of exception 48 times and several of its provisions have been written into law. According to official statistics, more than 91,000 people have been arrested, in excess of one percent of the country’s population, including thousands of minors. 

Human rights organizations claim to have documented mass arbitrary detention, torture, enforced disappearances, and due process violations, including denial of access to counsel and mass trials. Some journalists have fled the country and human rights defenders have been threatened or jailed. In September 2025, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) issued precautionary measures regarding two human rights defenders, Ruth López and Enrique Anaya, urging the government to end their prolonged incommunicado detention, ensure they have access to their family and legal counsel, and review the legality of their pre-trial detention. The Salvadoran government denies that either the state of exception or its policies and actions resulting from it constitute rights violations. It also points to a dramatic reduction in crime rates and wide public support for the state of exception evidenced in electoral results.  

The witnesses will discuss the situation in El Salvador and offer recommendations for U.S. policy.

The hearing will be held in person and is open to Members of Congress, congressional staff, the interested public, and the media. The hearing will be livestreamed via the Commission website. For any questions, please contact Todd Stein (for Co-Chair McGovern) or Mark Milosch (for Co-Chair Smith).

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