El Salvador’s Legislative Assembly, by a ruling majority, decided last Saturday (1st) – by 64 votes in favor, 19 against and one abstention – to remove five judges from the country’s Supreme Court.
The magistrates had opposed the measures that the Nayib Bukele government planned to take against the pandemic, criticized by international bodies as being human rights violations. For the president’s allies, the magistrates have turned the tribunal into a superpower.
The judges argue that the dismissal is unconstitutional. Opponents, both right and left, have called the decision a coup.
The action has been condemned by countries like the United States and by entities such as the Organization of American States (OAS), in addition to the NGO Human Rights Watch.
To understand the political context which led to the crisis between powers and which threatens this measure represents for Salvadoran democracy, this Tuesday (4) Breakfast with Oliver Stuenkel, professor of international relations at the Getúlio Vargas Foundation.
The audio program is published on Spotify, the streaming service partner of Folha in the initiative and specializing in music, podcast and video. You can listen to the episode by clicking below. To access the application, register for free.
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Breakfast is published Monday to Friday, always at the start of the day. The episode is presented by journalists Marina Dias and Maurício Meireles, with a production by Jéssica Maes, Laila Mouallem and Victor Lacombe. The sound editing is produced by Thomé Granemann.