El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele issued a firm response following a controversial fashion show at Paris Fashion Week, where a designer transformed the runway into a symbolic tribute to individuals incarcerated in El Salvador’s high-security prison CECOT—many of whom are linked to violent transnational gangs.
The fashion segment featured models in outfits resembling prison uniforms, echoing viral imagery of inmates detained under Bukele’s territorial control policy. The show was shared widely online, including by political commentator Dom Lucre, who condemned it as a glamorization of “illegals and violent criminals.”
President Bukele, known for his uncompromising stance on crime, responded via X (formerly Twitter):
“We’re ready to ship them all to Paris whenever we get the green light from the French government,” he wrote, referencing the inmates shown in the designs.
The message was a direct rebuke to the perceived political exploitation of a security model that has drastically reduced homicide rates and earned El Salvador growing international recognition for its transformation from one of the world’s most violent countries into one of the safest in Latin America.
Analysts have described the Paris show as a dangerous distortion of reality, one that attempts to recast violent offenders as victims while dismissing the suffering of communities affected by decades of gang control.
The CECOT mega-prison, a centerpiece of El Salvador’s anti-gang efforts, houses over 40,000 high-risk inmates. The government’s approach has been both lauded and criticized, but for many Salvadorans, it has restored public spaces, investor confidence, and personal safety.
Bukele’s firm response highlights a broader debate over Western narratives that romanticize criminality under the guise of artistic expression—often at the expense of justice, truth, and the real victims of violence.