EL SALVADOR-ELECTION-RIGHTS-PRISON

Salvadorean Maricela Méndez, who was imprisoned in several prisons in the country after being captured pregnant during the emergency regime, is photographed with her daughter during an interview with AFP in San Salvador on January 29, 2024. El Salvador President Nayib Bukele's war on gangs is credited with slashing homicide rates and restoring security and dignity to citizens of what was once one of the world's most dangerous countries. The price, say observers and victims, is paid in arbitrary arrests, inhumane detention -- even torture -- and fear of a whole new kind. (Photo by STRINGER / AFP) (Photo by STRINGER/AFP via Getty Images)