--- title: 28/08 • EL SALVADOR description: El Salvador is undergoing one of the most significant political transformations in its modern history. image: https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/hubfs/Pray%20the%20News%20Banner%20Images%20El%20Salvador.png --- [![Anglican Missions logo](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/hubfs/anglican-missions-and-awa.png)](http://www.anglicanmissions.org.nz) - [NEWSROOM HOME](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz) - [NEWSLETTER](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/enews) - [PRAY THE NEWS](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/pray) [DONATE NOW](https://anglicanmissions.org.nz/donate/) Central America # 28/08 • EL SALVADOR El Salvador is undergoing one of the most significant political transformations in its modern history. [Anglican Missions](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/pray/author/anglicanmissions) Aug 28, 2025 --- El Salvador is undergoing one of the most significant political transformations in its modern history. In July 2025, President Nayib Bukele and his New Ideas party passed sweeping constitutional reforms allowing [indefinite presidential re-election,](https://apnews.com/article/el-salvador-bukele-term-limits-b6ea5e72137ecdfa2bd826aa4e06d63d) extending presidential terms to six years, and removing runoff elections. The changes were passed rapidly and with minimal debate, raising concerns about democratic backsliding. At the heart of this shift is Bukele’s highly popular [anti-gang crackdown,](https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2025/country-chapters/el-salvador)launched in 2022 under a “state of exception” that suspended key civil liberties. Over 85,000 people have since been detained; many without warrants or trial. A massive new prison was also constructed to hold up to 15,000 inmates. While violence has fallen dramatically, there is significant potential for systemic abuses including arbitrary arrests, prison deaths, overcrowding, and the detention of minors and vulnerable individuals. Families report missing loved ones. Civil society organisations like Cristosal have been [forced to suspend work or flee the country](https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/el-salvador-rights-group-flees-bukeles-deepening-crackdown-2025-07-17/) amid threats. Bukele’s popularity, bolstered by these security based successes, have given his government the political capital to consolidate power. However, it has also created the opportunity to sideline dissent. Critics fear that institutions built to check executive authority, including the judiciary, press, civil organisations, are being systematically eroded. Meanwhile, poverty, food insecurity, and climate vulnerability persist, [especially in rural areas.](https://borgenproject.org/about-poverty-in-el-salvador/) An over-focus on security could crowd out critical resources needed to address these root challenges to El Salvador's most vulnerable. The country is at a tense crossroads: many Salvadorans feel safer, but many others feel silenced, displaced, or at risk. --- ### PRAYER POINTS: - We pray for those detained, especially minors and those held without charge, and for their families seeking answers and justice. - We pray for for civil society leaders, human rights workers, and local churches, whose voices and presence remain vital in holding space for compassion and reform. - We pray for the Salvadoran people, that safety and stability would not come at the cost of dignity, freedom, and justice for all. --- [Click here](https://anglicanmissions.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/PRAY-THE-NEWS-PRINTABLE-280825-EL-SALVADOR.pdf) to download a printable version of Pray the News. [Central America](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/pray/tag/central-america) ## SIMILAR POSTS World News ### [24/04 • POPE FRANCIS](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/pray/240425) On Easter Monday, Pope Francis passed away in Rome at the age of 88, following a stroke and cardiac arrest. Anglican Missions Apr 24, 2025 Geopolitics ### [08/05 • DIPLOMATIC OPENINGS](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/pray/080525) Amongst all the stories of war, conflict and disaster, moments of dialogue and diplomacy (however small) matter deeply. Anglican Missions May 8, 2025 Disasters ### [04/09 • SUDAN & AFGHANISTAN](https://news.anglicanmissions.org.nz/pray/040925) This past week, two devastating natural disasters struck some of the world’s most fragile places. 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