Nayib Bukele

[[File:Presidente Nayib Bukele (cropped).jpg|thumb|165px|The personification of charming but deadly.]]
{{politics}}

His Excellency
 '''Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez''' {{lived|1981}} is the self-declared world's coolest [[dictator]]<ref>[https://www.usip.org/publications/2024/02/el-salvadors-bukele-worlds-coolest-dictator-philosopher-king El Salvador’s Bukele: From ‘World’s Coolest Dictator’ to ‘Philosopher King’] ''United States Institute of Peace''</ref> and the current 81st president of [[El Salvador]] since 2019. Bukele is a unique example of the [[right-wing]] [[populism]] that has swept the world in recent years. As an example, Bukele is a right-wing [[authoritarian]] but denies that he is on the right or the left. Despite his denial of being on the right, he curiously has been praised by rightists and [[conservatives]] worldwide.<ref>[https://apnews.com/article/nayib-bukele-el-salvador-president-0ab3b1d63d3633c535b2cb9b60c56879 ‘Coolest dictator’ to ‘philosopher king,’ Nayib Bukele’s path to reelection in El Salvador] ''AP News''</ref><ref>[https://www.vox.com/2024/2/24/24081448/cpac-trump-republicans-bukele-milei How US conservatives fell for two of Latin America’s most controversial leaders] ''Vox'' By Ellen Ioanes  Feb 24, 2024, 6:00am EST</ref>

Bukele is the descendant of [[Palestinian]] [[Orthodox]] [[Christians]] who left the country in 1921. His grandparents were devout Christians, while his father was a Christian but converted to [[Islam]] later in his life. His mother was also a staunch Christian and remained so.<ref>[https://www.timesofisrael.com/his-dad-was-an-imam-his-wife-has-jewish-roots-meet-el-salvadors-new-leader/ His dad was an imam, his wife has Jewish roots: Meet El Salvador’s new leader] ''The Times of Israel''</ref><ref>[https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestine-el-salvador-gaza-solidarity-president-diaspora-divide El Salvador: A pro-Israel president of Palestinian descent deepens divide among diaspora] ''Middle East Eye''</ref><ref>[https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/the-americas/2024/02/08/who-is-nayib-bukele-the-worlds-coolest-dictator/ Who is Nayib Bukele, the 'world's coolest dictator'?] ''The National News''</ref><ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/comment/2024/02/14/nayib-bukele-el-salvador-libertarian-murder-rate/ Nayib Bukele is not the hero conservatives think he is] ''The Telegraph''</ref>

Since his ascendance to the presidency in 2019, Bukele has held his country in a death grip of power. He has used emergency powers during the crackdown crisis to strengthen his hold and effectively make the country an autocracy.<ref>[https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/07/16/el-salvador-in-the-grip-of-the-bukele-system_6055512_4.html El Salvador in the grip of the 'Bukele system'] ''Lemonde System'' By Angeline Montoya Published on July 16, 2023, at 5:00 pm (Paris)</ref> Though many Salvadorans have a positive opinion towards him, with his approval rating even reaching as high as 90%, his dissidents and some [[whistleblowers]] have been shut down or have fled the country during the [[chaos]].<ref>[https://remezcla.com/features/culture/nayib-bukele-salvadorans-us/ Amongst Salvadorans in the US, Opinion Is Split on Conservative New President Nayib Bukele] ''Remezcla''</ref> Bukele is noted to be part of the growing [[far-right]] wave in [[Latin America]] (and the world).<ref>[https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2024/04/01/latin-americas-new-hard-right-bukele-milei-kast-and-bolsonaro Latin America’s new hard right: Bukele, Milei, Kast and Bolsonaro] ''The Economist'' Apr 1st 2024</ref><ref>[https://jacobin.com/2019/07/el-salvador-nayib-bukele-donald-trump The Donald Trump of Central America] ''Jacobin''</ref>

==The good==
{{Update section}}
Bukele fought [[drug]] [[gangs]] that engaged in violence and defended [[poor]] neighborhoods from such violence. As a result, homicides in the El Salvador plummeted significantly. Unfortunately, he used this issue as a Trojan Horse for cracking down on inoffensive drug users as well, such as [[marijuana]] users.<ref>[https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/thousands-of-innocent-people-jailed-in-el-salvadors-gang-crackdown Thousands of innocent people jailed in El Salvador’s gang crackdown] ''PBS Newshour''</ref>

==The bad==
Like other right-wing Latin American leaders, Bukele has built a [[cult of personality]] (derived from Salvadorans fed up with the political establishment and facing hardship across the country) around himself as a result of his brutal crackdowns.<ref>[https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2023-07-25/growing-cult-of-nayib-bukele Inside the growing cult of El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele, Latin America’s political star] ''Los Angeles Times''</ref><ref>[https://www.americasquarterly.org/article/nayib-bukeles-growing-list-of-latin-american-admirers/ Nayib Bukele’s Growing List of Latin American Admirers] ''Americas Quarterly''</ref> Bukele started off as a self-proclaimed radical leftist (for which he received some backlash<ref>[https://thenationaltelegraph.com/news/nayib-bukele-i-am-a-radical-leftist/ Nayib Bukele: “I Am A Radical Leftist”] The National Telegraph</ref>), but later claimed that he became independent when he entered politics and ran for president. Curiously, his policies are right leaning and he has a huge right-wing audience inside and outside El Salvador. Many in said audience (mostly Spanish speaking but also English speaking) defend or deny any atrocities committed by him or under his regime, basically making his audience a cult based around him. This is not surprising, given that many far-right leaders around the world have their own cults of personality.<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/comment/2024/02/14/nayib-bukele-el-salvador-libertarian-murder-rate/ Nayib Bukele is not the hero conservatives think he is] The Telegraph</ref>

Bukele implemented the typical right-wing policies as his counterparts abroad, namely banning [[abortion]] and barring [[LGBT]] people from society and preventing them from being recognized or even identifying publicly.<ref>[https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/04/24/abortion-bans-popular-el-salvador-latin-america/ When Abortion Bans Are Too Popular to Overturn] ''Foreign Policy''</ref><ref>[https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/01/08/no-safe-haven-lgbt-people-el-salvador No Safe Haven for LGBT People in El Salvador] ''Human Rights Watch''</ref> LGBT Salvadorans face social stigma and brutal crackdowns just for being themselves, all in the name of "[[traditional marriage]]" and "[[family values]]".

Reports have uncovered that Bukele made secret deals with the country's gangsters and drug traffickers to make it look like that crime has decreased and that his anti-crime crusades are working.<ref>{{cite news |last=Wilkinson |first= Tracy  |date= September 24, 2024|title= News Analysis: Bukele claims he cleaned up El Salvador. But at what cost?|url=https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2024-09-24/el-salvador-bukele |work= L.A. Times |quote= The website El Faro, generally regarded as one of the best news organizations in Latin America, has been so rigorously hounded by [Bukele's] government officials that most of its reporters have had to flee the country. Its reporting has exposed Bukele’s alleged secret deals with gangsters and drug traffickers, among other corruption scandals.|access-date=August 15, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=December 8, 2021|title=US accuses El Salvador of secretly negotiating truce with gang leaders|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/08/el-salvador-us-gang-leaders-truce|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=27 December 2023|archive-date=27 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231227111615/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/08/el-salvador-us-gang-leaders-truce|url-status=live}}</ref> <ref>{{cite news|date=February 28, 2023|title=El Salvador Government Protection of MS-13 from Extradition Emerges in DOJ Indictment|url=https://elfaro.net/en/202302/el_salvador/26739/el-salvador-government-protection-of-ms-13-from-extradition-emerges-in-doj-indictment|work=El Faro|access-date=27 December 2023|archive-date=27 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231227111615/https://elfaro.net/en/202302/el_salvador/26739/el-salvador-government-protection-of-ms-13-from-extradition-emerges-in-doj-indictment|url-status=live}}</ref> Bukele deflected the claim as lies and claims that the previous Salvadorian governments have done such shady deals. Additionally, in March 2022, there was a significant spike of violence, with members of Bukele's Nuevos Ideas suggesting that these violent acts were done to try get Bukele back to the negotiating table with the country's criminal elements.

==Far-right politics==
Bukele is part of the far-right wave of politicians gaining steam and grabbing power worldwide. Bukele has abused his power, against the [[rights]] of people such as indigenous communities, the LGBT community, [[feminists]], immigrants, the homeless, drug addicts, and recreational drug users.

Like many far-rightists worldwide, he is a staunch supporter of the [[Zionist]] state of [[Israel]] and the genocide in Gaza ([[Internalized discrimination|Despite being of Palestinian ancestry himself]]).<ref>[https://ilcs.sas.ac.uk/blog/bukele-presidency-masks-complex-history-palestinian-involvement-salvadoran-politics Bukele presidency masks complex history of Palestinian involvement in Salvadoran politics] Institute of Languages, Cultures & Societies</ref>

As part of the interconnected global far-right movement, Bukele was one of the many right-wing leaders interviewed by [[Tucker Carlson]], as he was promoted and propped up by his [[propaganda]]. In one segment, Bukele proclaimed that the [[United States]] was less safe than both his own country and other [[Latin American]] countries because of immigration to the States (including from his own country). Carlson even praised Bukele in one of his segments after the interview.<ref>[https://www.mediamatters.org/tucker-carlson/tucker-carlson-guest-praises-el-salvadors-authoritarian-president-failing-bitcoin Tucker Carlson guest praises El Salvador’s authoritarian president for failing Bitcoin experiment] Media Matters for America</ref>

Much like his other counterparts, he [[scapegoat]]s [[George Soros]] for all of his country’s problems. Bukele spoke at the American Conservative Political Action Conference accusing George Soros of attempting to "dictate public politics and laws" in El Salvador.<ref>[https://www.eleconomista.com.mx/internacionales/Bukele-lanza-criticas-a-Soros-por-injerencia-en-El-Salvador-20231212-0010.html Bukele lanza críticas a Soros por injerencia en El Salvador]</ref><ref>[https://www.dw.com/es/nayib-bukele-en-latinoam%C3%A9rica-hay-periodistas-pagados-por-soros/a-65497538 Bukele: en Latinoamérica hay periodistas "pagados por Soros"]</ref> <ref>https://www.dw.com/es/nayib-bukele-en-latinoam%C3%A9rica-hay-periodistas-pagados-por-soros/a-65497538</ref>

Bukele made an appearance at CPAC in February 2024, speaking to the audience to beware “dark forces” trying to take over America.<ref>[https://www.npr.org/2024/02/23/1233577076/el-salvador-president-nayib-bukele-receives-a-warm-welcome-at-cpac El Salvador President Nayib Bukele receives a warm welcome at CPAC] NPR</ref>

==See also==
*[[Donald Trump]]
*[[Javier Milei]]
*[[Sebastián Piñera]]
*[[Alberto Fujimori]]
*[[Jair Bolsonaro]]
*[[Jaime Rodriguez]]
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
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