In May, Venezuelan migrants in El Salvador's CECOT prison attempted a futile escape, triggering six days of severe beatings. The abuse was documented by inmates who reported both male and female guards participated while filming the acts for amusement. Inmates faced dire conditions, resembling a dehumanizing reality captured in media tours controlled by the government, which showcased their tough approach to gang crimes. Reports from human-rights organizations detail severe mistreatment and the deaths of prisoners shortly after being taken for medical care, highlighting the prison's notorious limits on freedom and dignity.
One night in mid-May, some of the Venezuelan migrants deported from the United States to a prison in El Salvador tried to break the locks on their cells with metal rails from their beds. It was a futile gesture of rebellion; no one thought they could escape. Still, punishment was swift. For six consecutive days, the inmates were subjected to lengthy beatings, three inmates told me.
The Salvadoran human-rights organization Cristosal has documented cases of prisoners being transported out of the jail for urgent medical care, but these inmates died soon after, before anyone could ask them what it was like inside the prison.
#venezuelan-migrants #el-salvador-prison #human-rights-violations #government-abuse #inmate-treatment
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