El Salvador extends state of exception; 50,000 arrested

By MARCOS ALEMÁN
Associated Press

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — Some 50,000 people have been locked up in El Salvador since late March for alleged gang ties and the country’s congress has now approved another month-long extension of the state of exception that suspends some rights in the name of combatting gangs. Polls show the measure is widely popular despite criticism from civil rights organizations within and outside El Salvador. Those groups and relatives of the detained say people have been arrested without evidence or due process and jailed for months as they await trial. The extension received the support of 66 of the legislature’s 84 lawmakers.