Drug Legislation and the Prison System in El Salvador

• In Event: Drug Policy in the Americas: The Effects of Prohibition and the Route to Harm Reduction

Abstract

El Salvador has been experiencing not only heavy drug trafficking, but also increasingly brutal street gang activity. The country has traditionally taken a prohibitionist approach to narcotics control, and its legislation reflects this trend: The current drug law, dating back to 2003, criminalizes drug possession and metes out lengthier prison sentences for various drug offenses than did the previous decree. On the other hand, the street gangs or “maras” have gradually evolved, to a great extent in response to the mano dura (“iron fist”) policies that allowed the gangs to become more organized and criminally-involved. These groups rely strongly on extortion, drug sales, and money laundering, and for auxiliary tasks –such as the collection of extortion monies and the smuggling of prohibited items into the prisons– they fall back on minors and female associates. Unlike other countries in the Americas, El Salvador has not begun a debate on an alternative drug policy –in fact, the government is opposed to legal drug regulation– and remains focused on suppressing the street gangs. This paper examines El Salvador’s drug legislation and the changes it has suffered over the years. In particular, it explores the factors that contributed to the adoption of the current law, such as a perceived rise in drug trafficking and street gang activity, before analyzing its characteristics. The paper then proceeds to discussing the law’s implementation and its impact on the incarceration of specific population groups –including gang members and women– and on the country’s adult and juvenile prison system more generally.

Author

• Sonja C Wolf, Centro de Investigación y Docencias Económicas (CIDE)