President Nayib Bukele has gradually taken control of all of El Salvador’s institutions. Throughout there has been one check on his power: El Faro. The independent news site stands out in Latin America for its dogged investigative reporting that has exposed corruption and impunity within the Bukele administration, including the misuse of pandemic funds. More damningly, El Faro reporters have uncovered Mr Bukele’s relationship with gangs, revealing how they assisted his political rise and puncturing his narrative of how he has made El Salvador safer.
On May 9th El Faro published video interviews with two members of 18 Revolucionaries, a gang. They corroborate what the outlet has been reporting and investigating since 2018: that Mr Bukele has struck deals with gang leaders. They describe how the gangs mobilised voters for Mr Bukele, starting when he was mayor of the capital, San Salvador, and then throughout the early stages of his presidency. In March 2022 Mr Bukele launched his war against gangs, supposedly in response to their massacre of 87 people. Reports suggest these killings occurred after the government’s secret pact broke down with two of the most powerful groups: the Mara Salvatrucha 13 and Barrio 18. Despite the falling out, Mr Bukele continued to selectively release imprisoned gang leaders.
To some these revelations may seem minor compared to Mr Bukele’s other blatantly authoritarian turns, such as running for re-election despite a constitutional ban on consecutive terms or stacking the courts with loyalists. But Salvadoreans have traditionally turned against politicians who negotiate with gangs. That is why many suspect that Mr Bukele’s requests for Donald Trump to deport Salvadorean gang leaders from the United States is as much about security as it is about silencing potential whistle-blowers who could reveal further details about Mr Bukele’s dealmaking.
Mr Bukele has not responded to the allegations in the video interviews. There are reports the government is preparing arrest warrants for several El Faro reporters. The publication, under increasing pressure, has already relocated its headquarters to Costa Rica in 2023. Several of its journalists now live in exile.
Yet Mr Bukele appears to want some semblance of a free press to remain. El Salvador is not Venezuela; foreign correspondents, including myself, can enter. Many brave El Faro journalists continue to report from inside the country. But this could change. While Mr Bukele remains wildly popular—his ratings never drop below 80%—the economy is flagging. GDP is forecast to grow by only 2.5% this year; slower than in Guatemala or Honduras. Part of the drag is probably the erosion of legal certainty. A state of emergency has been in place for more than three years. If economic stagnation causes Mr Bukele’s popularity to fall, he may become more authoritarian.
For now, Mr Bukele appears to want to make money and burnish his strongman image by accepting alleged criminals deported by the United States. In a recent interview Félix Ulloa, the president’s deputy, said that El Salvador’s prisons are “services” that it is offering to any interested country, just as it offers medical services. El Salvador, he added, bears no responsibility to examine the guilt or innocence of the person being transferred. | 
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