Not a single person has been convicted or declared innocent. Mostly they've been charged with unlawful association and a smaller number for belonging to a terrorist group. The police raids are mainly in the poor neighborhoods where gangs have more of a stranglehold. They're looking for basically young men who seem dodgy to them. That might mean that they just have a tattoo.
A country that was not long ago gripped by gang violence and crime is slowly emerging from fear, thanks to a brutal roundup of young men by a wildly popular, social-media-savvy president. The streets may be safer, but now it is El Salvador’s democracy that is in danger—and neighbouring countries’ leaders may take lessons from its budding autocrat.
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