March 2024: One of the Safest Months in El Salvador in Over Four Decades

Based on homicides, March 2024 enters the list of the safest months in El Salvador in over 40-plus years. March 2024 ended with ten homicides for a 0.32 daily rate; additionally, it achieved 22 days with zero homicides.

March ended with four fewer homicides than February 2024, the safest month in El Salvador in over four decades. February 2024 concluded with six homicides for a 0.21 daily rate and 24 days without murders.

March 2024 is the 11th month during the Bukele administration that the daily homicide rate in El Salvador has been under 0.50; it is an impressive accomplishment considering that in 2019, the year Bukele took office, the daily murder rate was 6.57.

The safest months in El Salvador do not include the deaths of alleged gang members who have died in confrontations with the Salvadoran National Police or military security forces, 120 in 2022, 38 in 2023, and two thus far in 2024.

El Salvador’s security has drastically improved to new low levels since Nayib Bukele became president on June 1, 2019. For example, March 2024 is the 24rd consecutive month that the daily homicide rate for the country has been under one.

Furthermore, under the current administration, El Salvador has achieved over 520 days with zero homicides. The days with zero homicides in El Salvador are remarkable, considering that before the Nayib Bukele Administration, El Salvador had experienced less than five days with zero homicides in 15 years.

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2023 ended as the safest year in El Salvador in over 40 plus years. In 2023, 154 people were murdered, for a daily homicide rate of 0.42 or 2.4 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.

Since the 90s, Salvadorans have grappled with persistent security concerns, navigating challenges that impact daily life. However, going into 2024, life in El Salvador is better since security has improved.

Reduction in homicides is one of the main achievements of the Nayib Bukele administration.

Salvadoran authorities credit the implementation of the Territorial Control Plan and the State of Exception launched on March 27, 2022, for the impressive homicide reduction. Both plans have allowed Salvadoran authorities to remove gang members from the streets.

The Territorial Control Plan launched in 2019 has seven phases: Preparation, opportunity, modernization, incursion, extraction, and integration. Phase seven is unknown at this time.

The Regime of Exception was approved last March by the Legislative Assembly at the request of Bukele. Since then, the number of homicides has dropped substantially.

During this exception regime, more than 78,000 people have been detained – suspected of being gang members or collaborators. The controversial security measure has been extended over 20 times.

National and international human rights organizations have criticized the Regime of Exception for human rights violations, arbitrary arrests, and the death of inmates in prisons.

However, surveys conducted during the State of Exception have shown that the majority of Salvadorans approve of this controversial measure.