A HISTORY AND ETHNOGRAPHY OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE IN EL SALVADOR: PURSUITS OF JUSTICE AND GUARANTEES OF NON-RECURRENCE

Abstract

El Salvador underwent a Civil War that lasted from 1980 to 1992 which resulted in severe human rights abuses followed by a series of processes to transition to peace through employing transitional justice mechanisms. After the war, several injustices committed have yet to receive a meaningful response. Through the “War on Gangs,” the ruling elite have steered the judicial system towards “punitive populism” by scapegoating the socially and economically underprivileged populations in exchange for political gain. This approach to organized crime comes at the cost of legal rights of all Salvadorans and exacerbates precarious positions of many in the country, treating the symptoms of socioeconomic disparity without addressing the root causes. This research investigates the current and ongoing transitional justice processes, challenges that human rights defenders face in their line of work, and the current challenges in the realm of human rights.