According to the survey, 90% of the Salvadorans consulted expressed not having been victims of crime.
The results of the security plans implemented by the president, Nayib Bukele, to combat gangs and other criminal structures have meant that El Salvador is positioned as the best evaluated among 12 Latin American countries, surpassing nations such as Costa Rica, Mexico, and Colombia.
A citizen consultation study carried out in May of this year by the firm CID-Gallup reflected that most of the population, in addition to approving the security measures, responded that they had not been a victim of crime in the last four months.
The polling company asked 1,200 citizens of each country mentioned if they had been victims of robbery or assault in the last four months of this year. In the case of El Salvador, 90% of those consulted answered no. This positions it as an international benchmark, ranking last among 12 nations that reflected alarming rates of pickpocketing and surpassing Mexico and Colombia.
President Bukele reacted to these results, and from his social networks he expressed: “After being the most dangerous country in the world… We are on the way to being the safest country in Latin America. And we go on…”.
Other data reflected in the study is that neighboring Guatemala, for example, ranked first among countries with a serious problem of insecurity derived from pickpocketing, since 53% of the citizens consulted expressed that they were victims of assault in the aforementioned period.
In that same order, Nicaragua follows with 45%; Ecuador with 43%; Peru with 34%; Mexico and Colombia with 32%; Venezuela with 30%; Dominican Republic with 25%; Honduras with 22%; Panama with 14%; Costa Rica with 12%; and finally, El Salvador with barely 10% of citizens affected by crime.
El Salvador implements strong security measures endorsed by the Constitution, such as the emergency regime that after four months has allowed the imprisonment of more than 47,000 gang members who were the ones who caused anxiety and insecurity in neighborhoods and communities and who could now face at least 20 years in prison just for being gang members.