Walking through downtown San Salvador would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. The city was rife with gangs and petty thieves who would assault, rob, and sometimes kill innocent civilians.
But the times are changing...
The homicide rate in El Salvador has been decreasing ever since its peak in 2015. It continued to decline when Nayib Bukele took office in 2019, and then dropped precipitously after he launched the war on the gangs back in early 2022.
El Salvador's Approach
The gangs were rooted out and incarcerated in CECOT, the largest prison in Latin America. (They have not been sent to the United States as some Americans believe, probably because Trump confused El Salvador with Venezuela twice in his speeches.)
Nowadays, you can walk through San Salvador without paranoia of being attacked. Tourism is up, and even locals who were opposed to Bukele's state of exception cannot deny that they feel much safer compared to just a few years ago.
What will be the fate of those who have been imprisoned? Bukele's government has setup rehabilitation programs for the gang members, so those who haven't committed violent crimes will eventually be re-integrated back into society.
Operation Panama 3.0
Given El Salvador's success in reducing assaults and homicides, some people have been wondering why other countries aren't emulating El Salvador's methods.
The truth of the matter is that they are. Look at Panama for example, which recently amassed a thousand new police officers, a hundred vehicles, and fifty motorbikes to locate and root out gang members.
While controversial, the comments on X are overwhelmingly in support of the new measures taken in Panama, and plenty are wishing for the same thing in their own countries, where crime continues to worsen due to soft policies and a migration crisis.
Migrant Crisis & Bitcoin
Migrants from Venezuela, Haiti, Ecuador, and other countries have been passing through Panama on their way to the United States. We can assume that some criminals were mixed in among them, and ended up staying in Panama, where action is now required.
Keep in mind that, as the manufactured chaos continues to unfold in western nations due to unchecked immigration and social unrest, it could be the perfect opportunity for governments to implement strict laws and establish a police state.
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin keep a check on government power however. El Salvador was the first to adopt Bitcoin in 2021, Argentina later made it legal to settle contracts in crypto, and Panama could very well be the next in line.
Only time will tell, however, if cryptocurrencies end up dissolving all nation states as they exist today.
Until next time...
If you learned something new from this article, be sure to check out my other posts on crypto and finance here on the HIVE blockchain. You can also follow me on InLeo for more frequent updates.
Read more articles related to El Salvador.
Resources
World Of Statistics - El Salvador Homicide Rate [1]
Operation Panama 3.0 News Article [2]
Photo Of Panama City [3]
CECOT Prison [4]