The so-called "Bukele model," promoted as a response to violence in El Salvador, has gained ground in Brazil’s electoral debate. Presidential candidates have begun citing it as a reference in the fight against organized crime.
For 55-year-old Carlos Dada, co-founder of the newspaper El Faro, the showcase of the Cecot megaprison conceals a system marked by mass arrests and restrictions on rights.
The newspaper Dada runs documented the government of Nayib Bukele’s pact with local gangs to bring down homicides, but was forced to leave El Salvador after facing pressure and persecution.
Today, from exile, Dada is watching with concern as the model is received in Brazil. "I was concerned that so many candidates in Brazil are offering the Bukele model as a solution," he told Folha.
Brazilian presidential candidates invoke the so-called "Bukele model" as a reference in the fight against organized crime. What is this model?
