Former San Salvador mayor Ernesto Muyshondt was subjected to human rights violations during his arrest, a UN report revealed. Photo: EFE.
The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention determined that the imprisonment of the former mayor of San Salvador violates international law and demanded his release, compensation and an independent investigation.
On Monday, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention urged the Salvadoran state to grant the immediate release of former San Salvador mayor Ernesto Muyshondt, as well as the right to compensation and other forms of redress.
Since June 2021, his detention violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The experts’ opinion, adopted at their 105th session, states that the authorities provided no legal basis to justify the initial arrest. The rapporteurs noted that the then-mayor was arrested and charged with new offenses after having been acquitted in previous proceedings, constituting a series of arrests without any real legal basis.
While the document is not legally binding, it also highlights serious irregularities in the pretrial detention imposed on the politician, who was also missing from September 2023 to December 2024.
Experts indicated that the statements made by public officials after his arrest amounted to a guilty plea by Muyshondt and a prejudgment of the facts, intended to influence public opinion before a court hearing.
#SocorroInEnglish
This image is a haunting testament to a human rights crisis. Look at the faces, in each one represents a life lost in El Salvador's prison system during the state of exception, with 94% not being gang members. We cannot remain silent while so many die without… pic.twitter.com/H9cCa5wDqd— Socorro Jurídico Humanitario (@SJHumanitario) June 8, 2026
In this regard, the group believes that the former official was subjected to mistreatment and even torture, a situation that compromised his ability to mount a defense.
Given this situation, the UN urges the government to conduct a thorough and independent investigation into the circumstances of this arbitrary deprivation of liberty.
Bukele Breaks With the OAS: ‘We Made the Mistake of Putting our Trust in Them’
Muyshondt, who governed the capital between 2018 and 2021 as a member of the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA), faces a complex legal situation.
In February 2025, he was sentenced to four years in prison for dereliction of duty. Seven months later, in September, he received a new 18-year prison sentence for electoral fraud and illicit association, after allegedly negotiating votes with criminal gangs.
( teleSUR )
