They condemn ‘baby deaths’ in El Salvador prisons

At least 176 girls and boys from El Salvador They were orphaned after one of their parents died while being imprisoned under the emergency system adopted by the government. President Nayib Bukele According to a report by a human rights organization on Wednesday (07/10/2024), the crackdown on gangs has been underway since March 2022 Cristosal.

“It has been determined that at least 176 children of detainees were orphaned due to the death of their parents during the first two years of the measure,” the NGO said.

Cristosal He also condemned “imprisonment without sentence.”the deaths of infants and innocent adults; and the deepening Social inequality and gender” were part of a survey published on Wednesday.

“One example of the seriousness of the reported incident is Dina Hernandeza 28-year-old human rights activist, was 35 weeks pregnant when she was detained,” the report details. Cristosal.

“Three weeks later, her family learned that the daughter she was carrying had died and was left to pick up the body. No information from family members With regard to Deena’s health, it is unknown whether she received any postpartum care,” the document added.

Cristosal El Salvador Guarantee “It has a judicial system adapted specifically for an emergency regime, in which judges have lost their independence. The human cost of this policy is high: 261 adults and four children died in state custody between 2022 and 2024”.

In April 2024, some non-governmental organizations human rights – Between them Cristosal– They have already reported that 244 people died in state custody between March 27, 2022 and February 29, 2024.

“The deaths of people deprived of their liberty during the state of emergency have left many children orphaned, at a high cost, as the State has failed in its obligation to safeguard their lives and health,” he said. Zaira Navas, head of the rule of law department.

The lawyer warned that the death toll in prisons “could be much higher” but that the “lack of official information” prevented us from knowing the true number.

The report states that it is “still impossible to accurately quantify” the number of girls and boys “who face” abandonment due to the arrest or imprisonment of their relatives. Cristosal It estimated that at least 62,022 people under the age of 15 “may have suffered some form of abandonment as a result”.

Different human rights organizations have criticized the emergency regime policy, arguing that it violates fundamental guarantees, but Bukele has refused to abolish it.

At the President’s request, Congress approved an emergency regime allowing arrests without a court order in response to an escalation of violence that left 87 people dead between March 25 and 27, 2022.

Congress extended the measure on July 9, 2024, arresting more than 81,000 suspects.