El Salvador’s president has locked up 19,000 people in a month

OUTSIDE THE public defender’s office in San Salvador, where lawyers employed by the state provide free legal counsel, the pavement throngs with people seeking help for relatives who have been swept up in mass arrests. Lawyers instruct them on which documents to bring to court. A utility bill is helpful proof of identity, says one. “What if we don’t have running water or electricity where we live?” asks a woman.

In a terrifying outburst of gang violence in March, 87 people were killed in three days. President Nayib Bukele has cracked down and—to no one’s surprise—awarded himself more powers. On April 24th the Legislative Assembly, which the president controls, extended a state of emergency for a second month. Citizens are barred from gathering in groups outside. The police no longer need to give an explanation when arresting people. Since the emergency powers came into force they have rounded up more than 19,000. Small crowds wait outside prisons, hoping to locate their loved ones.