Central America
Brazilian deputies visit Cecot and highlight security results
December 18 |
Brazilian federal deputy Eduardo Bolsonaro highlighted yesterday on social networks the security results obtained by the government of President Nayib Bukele. The Brazilian legislator was part of the delegation of seven parliamentarians who visited the country to see the Terrorism Confinement Center (Cecot) and all the security policies implemented in the last four years.
He also reiterated that President Bukele has a 90% approval rating from the population and that the security measures implemented with the Territorial Control Plan (PCT) and the exception regime have allowed El Salvador to accumulate more than 500 days without homicides during his administration, in which more than 75,000 criminals, mainly gang members, have also been arrested.
The implementation of security strategies, reforms to regulations so that criminals do not leave prisons, the alignment of powers and the dignification of the security forces are some of the aspects that Bolsonaro highlighted, so he reiterated that this has allowed President Bukele to achieve the transformation of El Salvador.
“What Nayib Bukele did is everything we proposed in terms of security in the Brazilian congress. The mentality is the same: arrested criminals do not commit crimes in society. With greater punishability, the economic theory of the criminal becomes more dangerous for him to commit a crime. Bukele managed to do this by electing a group of aligned parliamentarians and purging mainly the radical left in the elections,” Bolsonaro wrote in X.
The congressman stressed that, thanks to the exception regime, El Salvador went from being the most violent country in the world in 2015 to a benchmark in security and rivaling Switzerland for the number of homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.
“Today, if a police officer finds a notorious mafioso, he can arrest him for up to six months, the time the Public Prosecutor’s Office has to present the first evidence against the accused. The rule is that the accused responds to the arrested case (in Brazil it is the opposite). Between criminals and good people, today El Salvador cares about good citizens. That is why in Brazil there are criminals every day who have criminal records, who walk around the block and are arrested countless times; no longer in El Salvador,” he said.
President Bukele managed to decrease the criminal actions of gangs since he began his administration in 2019, and 2023 is about to close as the safest year in the history of El Salvador, an aspect that has paved the way for sectors such as the economy, tourism and education to develop and strengthen; to this effect the president considered important the dignification of law enforcement and has emphasized that none of the above would be possible without them.
Bolsonaro pointed out: “With more personnel, better salaries, with social security support, technology, support from the president and the population, as well as legal support, the police will fight the initial battle. Then comes social support: health, education, employment. Before, it made no sense to build schools in a gang-dominated area […]. Tourism also receives special attention as an economic engine.
Central America
Nicaragua’s Ortega and Murillo Mourn Pope Francis, Acknowledge ‘Difficult’ Relationship
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo, who also serve as co-leaders of the country, expressed their condolences on Monday following the death of Pope Francis, acknowledging that their relationship with the late pontiff had been “difficult” and “troubled.” Nicaragua officially suspended diplomatic ties with the Vatican during his papacy.
“Our relationship, as Nicaraguans who are believers, devoted and faithful to the doctrine of Christ Jesus, was difficult and troubled—unfortunately shaped by adverse and painful circumstances that were not always understood,” Ortega and Murillo wrote in a message of condolence.
“Despite the complexity and hardships, despite the manipulation we all know occurred, despite everything, we kept our hope alive through Christian faith,” they continued. “We understood the distance, and above all, the complicated and strained communication that prevented better relations. We also recognized the confusion caused by strident voices that disrupted any attempt at genuine interaction.”
Pope Francis had previously compared the Ortega regime to communist dictatorships and even to Hitler, a remark that further strained relations between Managua and the Holy See.
Central America
Cardinal Rodríguez to Attend Funeral of Pope Francis: “He Was Very Dear to Me”
Honduran Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodríguez announced on Monday that he will attend the funeral services of Pope Francis, who passed away at the age of 88 at his residence in Casa Santa Marta due to a stroke.
“We will be there throughout the novena and then, God willing, at the burial,” Rodríguez said in a phone interview with HRN Radio in Tegucigalpa, apparently calling from Spain.
He added that the last time he saw Pope Francis was in October 2024, during and at the end of that year’s synod, and that they remained in contact through email. “Sometimes, the Pope would even call me,” said Rodríguez, who was born on December 29, 1942, and was made a cardinal by Pope John Paul II on February 21, 2001.
Rodríguez expressed deep sorrow over the passing of Pope Francis, saying: “He was a very dear person to me.”
However, he also shared a message of hope, pointing out that the Holy Father passed away during Easter: “This is a sign. He gave his life completely like the Lord Jesus, and though he died, we believe in faith that he has risen, now with Christ in eternal life.”
Rodríguez, who for ten years coordinated the Vatican’s Council of Cardinals, was one of the eight cardinals selected by Pope Francis to help govern the Catholic Church and reform the Roman Curia.
In January 2023, upon turning 80, Rodríguez stepped down as Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, and Pope Francis appointed Spanish priest José Vicente Nácher Tatay as his successor.
Central America
Senator Van Hollen Meets with Deported MS-13 Member in El Salvador; Trump and Bukele React
U.S. Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, representing the state of Maryland, held a meeting in El Salvador with deported MS-13 gang member Kilmar Ábrego García, a member of the criminal group classified by the U.S. government as a terrorist organization.
“Kilmar Ábrego García, miraculously resurrected from the ‘extermination camps’ and ‘torture chambers,’ now sipping margaritas with Senator Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!” wrote President Nayib Bukeleon X (formerly Twitter), sharing photos of Van Hollen, Ábrego García, and a lawyer sitting together at a Salvadoran hotel.
The deported gang member is seen wearing a plaid shirt and a flat-brimmed cap, seated at a table with glasses and coffee cups. The senator also shared images of the meeting on his own social media accounts.
Bukele reaffirmed that Ábrego will remain in El Salvador and will not be returned to the United States.
“Now that his health has been confirmed, he has earned the honor of remaining under the custody of El Salvador,” Bukele added.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump criticized the senator’s meeting with Ábrego on Truth Social, calling Van Hollen “a fool” for advocating for Ábrego’s return to the U.S.
A magnitude 6 earthquake shakes the province of Esmeraldas in Ecuador, bordering Colombia
Preparations for Pope Francis’ funeral, in figures
“A dignified life” for migrants, the plea in Panama in memory of Pope Francis
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
Central America4 days agoCardinal Rodríguez to Attend Funeral of Pope Francis: “He Was Very Dear to Me”
-
Central America4 days agoNicaragua’s Ortega and Murillo Mourn Pope Francis, Acknowledge ‘Difficult’ Relationship
-
International4 days agoDominican Republic Declares Three Days of Mourning for Pope Francis
-
International3 days agoPope Francis and Trump, a relationship of disagreements marked by migration
-
International4 days agoDHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s Purse Stolen in D.C. Restaurant Heist
-
International2 days agoFrom the transfer of the coffin to the funeral, three days to say goodbye to Pope Francis
-
International3 days agoWithin Francis’ private wake: respect and prayer for the deceased pope
-
International4 days agoPope Francis: The Quiet Architect Behind the U.S.-Cuba Thaw
-
International3 days agoTrump’s emissary will visit Russia this week for consultations on the arrangement in Ukraine
-
International2 days agoA very heterogeneous and divided conclave will elect the new pope
-
International2 days agoModi returns to India and shortens his visit to Saudi Arabia after a deadly attack in Kashmir
-
International3 days agoCardinal Becciu’s enigma: will he enter the conclave?
-
International3 days agoThe pope last called the Gaza parish on Saturday and asked about the children
-
International3 days agoA candidate for the Supreme Court denounces an unequal dispute in the judicial election of Mexico
-
International3 days agoAmerican universities and colleges sign a letter against Trump’s policy
-
International3 days agoThe Government of Colombia presents twelve questions that it will propose in a popular consultation to promote its reforms
-
International3 days agoBurma’s military junta extends ceasefire until April 30 due to the earthquake
-
International2 days agoEl Salvador formalizes the proposal for the exchange of Venezuelan deportees, according to Bukele
-
International2 days agoMaradona’s house arrest is again a focus of tension in the trial for his death
-
International2 days agoThe Peruvian Public Ministry denounces the former attorney general for an alleged corruption case
-
International2 days agoA judge orders the Trump Government to restore Voice of America services
-
International3 days agoInternational leaders begin to confirm their presence at Pope Francis’ funeral
-
International24 hours agoThe Pope’s funeral procession through the center of Rome worries the Italian authorities
-
International2 days agoDonald Trump will visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in mid-May
-
International3 days agoRoyal quinoa, the superfood that grows in front of the largest salt flat in the world in Bolivia
-
International1 day agoThe Arab League supports Hamas handing over control of Gaza and weapons to the Palestinian Authority
-
International3 days agoChurch charges ceased or resigned in the papacy of Francis for cases of pedophilia
-
International2 days agoThe president of the World Bank underlines his intention to lift his veto on nuclear energy
-
International4 hours ago“A dignified life” for migrants, the plea in Panama in memory of Pope Francis
-
International1 day agoMigrants want to stay on Mexico’s southern border because of Sheinbaum’s industrial plan
-
International24 hours agoA group of the poor and a delegation of migrants will participate in the funeral and burial of the pope on Saturday
-
International2 days agoMarco Rubio reorganizes the State Department to eliminate offices and jobs
-
International1 day agoThe pope’s doctor reveals his last moments of life and that he wanted to “die at home”
-
International4 hours agoA Russian general dies in the explosion of a car bomb near Moscow
-
International2 days agoThe Brazilian Supreme Court opens trial against six others accused of leading the coup attempt
-
International1 day agoFrom email to marriage: the day Pope Francis married a Uruguayan couple
-
International2 days agoA judge in the United States stops the deportation to El Salvador of a hundred Venezuelans
-
International4 hours agoA magnitude 6 earthquake shakes the province of Esmeraldas in Ecuador, bordering Colombia
-
International5 hours agoPutin and Witkoff address possible direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine
-
International5 hours agoPope Francis’ funeral procession will be a six-kilometer journey through the heart of Rome