It’s the biggest prison in the Americas.

El Salvador’s newly inaugurated “megaprison” is meant to hold 40,000 prisoners. President Nayib Bukele just proudly shared images of 2,000 prisoners being transferred to the ‘Terrorism Confinement Centre’, almost naked, wearing just thin shorts and with shaven heads.

Experts are warning that what’s happening here goes against international human rights standards. We’ve seen these images before from Guantánamo. We can't let this happen again.

Sign here to ask the Organization of American States, the main political, juridical, and social governmental forum in the Americas, to analyse the prison's conditions and evaluate if they adhere to international standards.

Click to ask the Organization of American States to shut down Guantánamo 2.0

Gangs in El Salvador have inflicted nothing but misery on the population. For decades, people have lived in fear of being extorted, kidnapped, raped, or murdered by rival groups.

This is why President Nayib Bukele’s “war on gangs” has proven very popular. The authorities have imprisoned over 50,000 alleged gang members since declaring a state of emergency, and the murder rate has dropped dramatically.

But as Amnesty International states:public security can’t come at the expense of massive human rights violations. The authorities have dismantled judicial independence and are committing torture and arbitrary detention to instil fear in people. At least 73 detainees have died in state custody.

El Salvador has surpassed the United States to claim the world’s highest incarceration rate. This is not the answer to a complex problem with deep-rooted socioeconomic causes.

International treaties signed by El Salvador lay out clear human rights standards for prisons. The government needs to comply with these or be held accountable.

After seeing the horrifying images shared by President Bukele we need public outcry to convince officials at the Organization of American States to investigate the megaprison and ensure prisoners are being treated like the human beings they are.

Tell international officials: investigate and shut down Guantánamo 2.0!

More information