In El Salvador’s mass trials, lawyers struggle to defend hundreds

A Human Rights Watch report describes due-process concerns in El Salvador’s mass trials, where large groups of people may face charges and convictions together. The group interviewed 15 defence lawyers, who said clients could not adequately defend themselves.

Lawyers reported difficulty obtaining case files and other obstacles to preparing cases. HRW says these problems undermine defendants’ ability to challenge evidence and protect their rights.

The trials are held in Tribunals Against Organized Crime, a court system supervised by the Supreme Court. Critics question the courts’ transparency.

The government says group proceedings are necessary to break up gangs amid the country’s crime problem. President Nayib Bukele introduced a state of emergency in March 2022, allowing expanded law-enforcement powers and mass arrests; critics say the approach has resulted in rights violations and wrongful imprisonment.

HRW reviewed one case in which more than 120 people received prison terms of 30 or 45 years for unlawful association, with no acquittals. The report adds to scrutiny of the trials, but the article gives no details of planned legal or policy changes.