Military Impunity and Gender-Based Violence Under Bukele

Co-published with LatFem Noticias

San Salvador - Ana*, 13 years old, liked to play soccer in her neighborhood in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, on Mondays and Thursdays. Each time she passed by the military base on her way to the soccer field, the men in uniforms would yell sexual things at her, and she tried her best to ignore them. 

One afternoon, while Ana was passing the base, the men, provoked by her refusal to acknowledge them, accused her of being a gang member. They said: “We will show you how to respect the military,” and raped her.

The men faced no consequences. Instead, word got out, and the story shifted against Ana, with rumors suggesting she had “flirted” with the military. This led to social ostracism for Ana, including being denied entry to some schools.

Ana’s story is not unique and reflects a broader issue in El Salvador, where, under President Nayib Bukele, gender-based violence committed by the military is often protected by the state. 

In February, Bukele, the self-proclaimed “world’s coolest dictator,” was re-elected to power. On the giant, flashing billboards that lit up the Plaza where he made his entrance, his ratings flashed across the screen: 85%, some of the highest in Salvadoran history—but that didn’t paint a fully accurate picture.

In March 2022, Bukele introduced a national state of exception. In his effort to end the country’s massive gang problem, the President effectively jailed 1% of El Salvador’s population, often with little evidence or due process. Over the past two years, forty thousand children in El Salvador have seen one or both parents taken by the system. 

However, a far more overlooked aspect of Bukele’s government is the danger it poses to women and girls.

“The country is going through a very complex moment. Horrible things are happening here,” says Patricia*, a community leader who has asked for anonymity for safety reasons. “Many people who belonged to gangs now wear army suits. We are receiving more cases where soldiers have raped 12-year-old girls. The level of aggression of the army is higher than before — and the Bukele government protects the military,” 

El Salvador has long held one of the highest femicide rates, the intentional killing of a woman or girl because of her gender, in Latin America and the world. There was a time when one woman was killed every 19 hours because she was female. Even before Bukele came into power, perpetrators were rarely held accountable: a 2018 study showed that 5% of all femicide cases that went to trial resulted in a conviction, and just 3% ended in a guilty verdict.

Now, under Bukele, official data suggest a decrease in femicides — but human rights groups say that other forms of violence against women, like disappearances, have increased. Due to the state’s protection of the military, most cases of gender-based violence by military personnel, such as Ana’s, simply go unreported.

There are women who feel safer now that gangs no longer pose a threat to daily life. Maria Cruz, 56, lives in Tierra Blanca, a village located about 80 kilometers southeast of San Salvador. 

“My daughter was murdered by the gangs from San Salvador. She was 19,” Maria told More to Her Story. “I don’t know why they murdered her. She liked to play soccer. It was a Sunday, and she was on her way to soccer practice. We don’t know how she died exactly, but I’m sure it was the gangs. The police said they would investigate, but they never completed the investigation.” 

As Maria told her story, men in military uniforms watched from a distance. On paper, their presence was meant to ensure safety, but how much safer Maria felt was unclear. Under Bukele’s rule, she, along with many other women, faced a new type of violence: the state-sanctioned protection of perpetrators, many from the military ranks themselves.

“Out there, they’re saying that violence against women is decreasing, but it’s not,” Patricia told More to Her Story. “[Bukele] has the power of the general attorneys, justice system, police, and Congress. So, even if you capture the perpetrator, there’s no guarantee of justice because he controls everything,”

Patricia said the solution requires more concentrated efforts and a confrontation with power. 

“The only power that is available now is controlled by the state, and everything that was built to protect women was deconstructed by the state.”

*Names have been changed.