For this round of region reports, I decided to focus on an article about the overwhelming prevalence of violence in El Salvador and its effect on the country’s young population. The country has a huge population of members of gangs such as MS-13. El Salvador’s Minister of Defense, David Munguía Payés, claims that there is a estimated 60,000 gang members living in the country. Studies showed that in 2016 there were over 5,000 deaths due to violence, an average of 14 to 15 daily. El Salvador has tried to combat this unpleasant environment for the youth by creating programs for them to find a safe space for children when they aren’t in school to keep them sheltered from the harsh realities of the country. The programs originally appeared to be a success as the article says, “In 2012, a national-level truce was declared whereby the gangs pledged to end many of their violent practices and the state committed to reducing its most repressive anti-gang strategies.” However, by 2014 the truce had fallen apart and since then the mood in El Salvador became very volatile with gunfights between gang members and security officials becoming a daily occurance.
The article briefly touches on the extreme poverty felt throughout El Salvador, but I think it is obviously the cause for this violent environment in the country. Without the ability to have an outlook for a successful future can see how it would be easy for the youth in the country to get involved in gang violence if they are trying to get whatever money they can by any means necessary. It seemed like the government had a sound solution to the problem with their community outreach programs but obviously they didn’t work out the way they were intended to. Its situation like these that make the American people want to provide refuge to those who have to try to find a life for themselves in harsh environments like that of El Salvador’s.