El Salvador study proposes gun control against high crime rates

El Salvador’s high crime rates and violence will only be reduced by adopting measures that promote gun control and the disarmament of the civilian population. The conclusion comes from the report “Violence and Criminality: Obstacles to Development” by the Salvadorian Foundation for the Economic and Social Development (Fusades).

 “It is essential to control access to weapons. El Salvador faces an enormous epidemic of violence, high crime rates and unsafe streets. All this puts democracy at great risk” states Rafael Pleitez, the project’s author and manager of the Foundation’s Social Services Sector.

For Pleitez, “the increase in criminality hinders the country’s development. It corrodes the quality of life and has a devastating effect on business, generating high security costs and highlights the government’s ineffectiveness in combating crime contributing to weakening democracy.”

 
In 2005, El Salvador had 55 homicides for every 100 thousand inhabitants. According to official data, weapons were used in 78% of the reported homicides in the country that year. As a means of confronting crime, the project suggests ten public policy measures to reduce violence and criminality.

The measures proposed address four areas: prevention, social and economic action, control and support. According to Pleitez, “the project proposes a comprehensive policy to combat violence and prohibit weapons in public places”.

The Fusades report proposes restricting weapons on the streets while guaranteeing the right to keep weapons at home. The report also mentions the pilot Project “Gun Free Towns” adopted in some Salvadorian cities and developed by National Council of Public Security in association with the UN Development Program (UNDP).

Among its various violence prevention measures, the project proposes the integration of the police forces, government, and civil society. In some municipalities such as San Martin, San Jose las Flores and Cinquerra, homicides dropped drastically after the Project was implemented, says Pleitez.

There are already a few successful results. In San Jose las Flores, for example, no homicides have been reported since 1994, in Cinquerra, the last homicide occurred 11 years ago and in San Martin, there was a 29% decrease in gun related crime and a 47% drop in homicides.

According to the study, “we will be able to reduce the high rates of crime in the nation by fostering citizenship, creating a culture of non-violence, by controlling the use of firearms in public places and developing activities to keep young people away from crimes.”

 The report emphasizes that increasing rates of imprisonment and sentencing will not lead to a reduction in violence. It also proposes more investment in intelligence, better salaries for police officers, the adoption of modern penitentiary systems, and a complete overhaul of both the Penal and Process Codes.

Popular support

The proposal for civil disarmament would have the support of most citizens of El Salvador. A recent survey showed that most of the population is in favor of arms control as a way of reducing criminality.

According to a survey conducted by the newspaper “La Prensa Gráfica” 70% of those interviewed were in favor of disarmament. The result proves that the population is against indiscriminate use of weapons.

 
 Close to 96% of those interviewed see weapons as synonymous with death rather than protection. Thirty-eight per cent believe a gun may deter crime and 35% believe weapons offer a feeling of safety. Forty per cent think weapons scare people off.

According to this survey, weapons are found in 9 % of Salvadorian’s homes. One thousand citizens over 18 years old were interviewed throughout the country.  Fusades will probably present the project for evaluation by the Citizen and Peace Security Commission of the Congress of El Salvador to be used as grounds for actions to the federal government.

(Carola Mittrany contributed reporting)

"Violencia y criminalidad en El Salvador: obstáculo para el desarrollo" in Spanish (PDF file)

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Gun Free Towns project cuts homicide rates drastically in El Salvador's San Martin

Translated by Cecília Piquet