Home » News » US Congressmen Criticize Bukele “Deviating” from Democracy | News from El Salvador

US Congressmen Criticize Bukele “Deviating” from Democracy | News from El Salvador

Six lawmakers in favor of Donald Trump view with concern the militarization of the Assembly, the defiance of court orders, the arbitrary and excessive use of power and the alleged negotiations of the Bukele government with MS-13.

To the President of the Republic, Nayib Bukele, it’s raining in the wet in Washington. Traditionally there has been a chorus of Democratic voices, opponents of President Donald Trump, who have voiced harsh criticism of the apparent undemocratic style of the Salvadoran ruler. However, little by little voices from the Republican side, a partner of the US president, are joining.

The most recent comes through a letter, where six legislators from that side express their concern about “A slow but steady abandonment of the rule of law and democratic norms that our hemisphere has fought so hard to preserve.”

Nayib Bukele Threatens Press Freedom, Denounce US Democratic Congressmen

The legislators David Joyce, Mario Díaz-Balart, Rodney Davis, Brian Fitzpatrick, Alex Mooney and Francis Rooney, all Republicans of the House of Representatives, signed this letter in which they observe democratic weakening in the country.

Some of these concerns, they add, are shared by other sectors within the Trump administration, such as the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) itself, which has administered the two Fomilenio compacts in the country, and which has criticized “The use of his government’s troops to intimidate his Congress and efforts to weaken court orders that declared extensions of power unconstitutional during the pandemic.”

With this, they refer to 9F, when Bukele led a military takeover of Congress to press for a loan and for the abuse of power carried out during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the government refused to stop the arrests of people who allegedly violated the quarantine, something that the Constitutional Chamber prohibited the Executive from doing by itself and without a law. Bukele not only disobeyed, but attacked the magistrates and called them “genocidal.”

In addition, lawmakers are concerned about reports that the government has legitimized MS-13 with negotiations to reduce violence. In the United States, this organization is not only considered a violent gang, but is also on the black list of international criminal groups.

Constitutional lawyers reiterate that the 9F broke the “constitutional order”

Legislators remind the president that MS-13 “It has been classified as a domestic terrorist organization by its own government and is actively involved in drug trafficking, trafficking of minors and has terrorized communities in the United States with its brutal and violent crimes.”

This group of legislators reminds Nayib Bukele that his government, through its participation in the Organization of American States and through its own foreign policy, “They have long promoted strong democratic institutions, adherence to the rule of law, and respect for human rights in the Americas.”

These values, they add, are important “To advance the security and prosperity of all citizens of the hemisphere, including Salvadorans”. Therefore, they state that they seek to continue financing programs that work for these values. However, they express how El Salvador has had a tradition of democracy and freedom for decades and call to maintain this path.

Mario Díaz-Balart (left) is one of the Republican congressmen who signed the letter and has been very close to President Donald Trump.

“Our commitment to freedom is relentless. That is why we have opposed the dictatorships that currently govern Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela “say these congressmen who hope they will never see this in El Salvador.

In addition, they remember that between their country and El Salvador it has been important, they emphasize that there are more than two million Salvadorans living and working in the United States, and they highlight the commitment of the Bukele administration to recognize Juan Guaidó as the interim president from Venezuela. “Through our Congress, our citizens have invested heavily in El Salvador’s institutions, security, and its economy.”they add.

Friends are over in Washington

This letter represents a new international political blow to Bukele, as it confirms that on both sides of the American spectrum, his style of governing appears not very democratic.

A parliamentary adviser to the Democratic side in the US told El Diario de Hoy that “there is no doubt about the concerns in Congress about the destruction of the democratic norms of the Bukele administration.”

In his view, the recent letter from Republicans and the one signed by a group of Democrats on September 10 condemning Bukele’s hostility to the media are signs that both US political sides are closely following the institutional decline in the country. Also remember that it is Congress, and not the White House, the institution with the “power of the wallet” that determines how cooperation is distributed.

Despite this warning, Bukele played down the statements of Republican lawmakers last night, saying there were only six. “They do not represent even 5% (of the House of Representatives). It is more or less 3%, which is the same as what you represent here, “he said in reference to what he considers his opposition.

“They are a very tiny group,” added Bukele.

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