President of El Salvador Declares His Intention to Run For Re-election
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele declared on September 15 during a live-streamed Independence Day celebration that he would run for a rerun in 2024. Bukele made his statement despite El Salvador’s previous presidents being forbidden by law from serving two terms in succession. The president emphasized that industrialized nations have been reelected, and now that their country’s democratic structure has been reconfigured, El Salvador will also.
Bukele’s Huge Support In El Salvador
A CID Gallup poll this month found that 95% of respondents approved of Bukele’s administration in security-related subjects, while 85% of respondents generally approved of his presidency.
El Salvadorians nevertheless protested in public after the revelation. Numerous issues regarded objectionable under Bukele’s administration, including the incorporation of Bitcoin, drew thousands of protesters.
In September 2021, when Bukele was president, he made the cryptocurrency Bitcoin legal tender in the nation. After a year of consistent price drops, the biggest crypto in the country just celebrated its first anniversary of launch.
The local populace is not as interested in cryptocurrencies as anticipated, despite introducing Bitcoin-focused academic activities like ‘Mi Primera Bitcoin’ (my first bitcoin) and serving as an inspiration to nearby nations like Columbia and Venezuela.
U.S Condemnations
Numerous civil liberties have been postponed during the six-month state of exception, which has also been sullied by reports of serious human rights violations and mass arrests. Earlier in the day, thousands of people gathered in San Salvador to protest Bukele’s centralization of control over the judiciary and executive and these issues. The Independence Day protests are being held for the second time in succession.
The administration coordinated counter-manifestations with other members of the public domain, as well as parades of troops and law enforcement officers.
Most Latin American nations’ constitutions have a provision prohibiting reelection, which is especially significant in a country that has endured decades of military dictatorships.
The clause was initially mentioned in El Salvador in 1841 and was confirmed in 1886, 1950, 1962, and as a component of the 1983 Constitution.
Last year, the Constitutional Chamber’s ruling was outright denounced by the US, and the acting US ambassador contrasted Bukele to Hugo Chavez. The State Department does not believe that the global community will see Bukele’s rerun as a topic of ‘internal affairs’ while waiting for other nations to join.
How Do El Salvadorians Perceive Crypto?
According to a nationwide survey conducted in February of this year, 20% of people currently use El Salvador’s popular cryptocurrency wallet, the Chivo Wallet, to transfer Bitcoin. If not, more than twice the quantity obtained for the initial $30 freebie.
Only 20% of the entrepreneurs surveyed stated they receive cryptocurrency payments, and the majority were more giant corporations rather than small businesses.
However, amid the bear market, the acceptance of Bitcoin as legal tender has brought a new breed of crypto-tourist to the nation. Official statistics show that this year, local tourism increased by 82.8%.
On Bitcoin adoption and use in El Salvador, skeptics keep switching sides. Thousands may be demonstrating against the regulations governing virtual money on the streets. However, some continue to view it as a financial and technological gain for a developing nation like El Salvador.
