Peru’s Fujimori Visits El Salvador’s CECOT Prison

Peru’s President Keiko Fujimori visited El Salvador’s maximum-security Terrorism Confinement Center, known as CECOT, on October 29. She has previously expressed interest in building a similar prison in Peru, which is grappling with extortion and rising homicides. Fujimori took office in July and was scheduled to meet with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on October 29.

Salvadoran Security and Justice Minister Gustavo Villatoro and Defense Minister Francis Merino Monroy showed Fujimori and her delegation the prison’s design, surveillance arrangements and systems for isolating gang members. Officials also described a prisoner reintegration program called “zero idleness.”

The visit included discussions on sharing expertise in public and digital security and modernizing government services. Fujimori praised Bukele’s security efforts, calling them a “successful model, a very useful model,” and referred to Peru’s experience confronting two major terrorist groups in the 1980s and early 1990s.

CECOT began operations in 2023, with space for as many as 40,000 people. More than 90,000 people have faced imprisonment in El Salvador since emergency rule began in March 2022, suspending some constitutional rights as authorities combat gangs. Human rights organizations have documented thousands of cases of alleged arbitrary arrests. The prison drew international attention in 2025 after Venezuelan deportees and some Salvadorans were sent there; those later released have alleged beatings and torture.

Fujimori Praises Prison Linked to El Salvador’s Mass Detentions

Peruvian President Keiko Fujimori toured El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison on October 29 and praised President Nayib Bukele’s security efforts as a “successful model.” Her interest in building a similar prison at home comes as Peru faces extortion and rising homicides.

The visit also puts the scale and consequences of El Salvador’s crackdown in view. More than 90,000 people have been imprisoned under a state of exception that began in March 2022 and suspends some constitutional rights. Human rights organizations have documented thousands of cases of alleged arbitrary arrests. El Salvador leads the region in the share of residents incarcerated: about 1.5% of its population is behind bars.

Officials showed Fujimori the prison’s surveillance and isolation systems and discussed security cooperation. CECOT can hold up to 40,000 people. In 2025, Venezuelan deportees and some Salvadorans were sent there; those later released have alleged beatings and torture. A model promoted for security cannot be separated from the rights concerns and human consequences documented alongside it.

Peru’s Fujimori Studies Bukele’s Security Model at CECOT

With Peru facing extortion and rising homicides, President Keiko Fujimori visited El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison on October 29 to examine a security approach she has already said she wants to learn from. Fujimori praised President Nayib Bukele’s efforts as a “successful model, a very useful model.”

Salvadoran ministers explained the facility’s design, surveillance protocols and methods for isolating gang members. The countries also discussed sharing expertise in public and digital security and modernizing government services. Officials described a reintegration program called “zero idleness.”

CECOT opened in 2023 and has capacity for 40,000 inmates. El Salvador’s state of exception, launched in March 2022 to fight gangs, has led to more than 90,000 imprisonments and suspends some constitutional rights. Human rights organizations have documented thousands of alleged arbitrary arrests. Those concerns deserve scrutiny, but they should not eclipse the security challenge Fujimori is confronting or the technical cooperation the two governments discussed.