RSF and its partners have recorded dozens of forced exiles from El Salvador—at least 53 according to RSF, with the help of the Association of Journalists of El Salvador (APES) and the Salvadoran Association of Participatory Broadcasting (ARPAS) within six months. APES, an RSF partner and a leading force in the fight for press freedom in the country, was itself forced to leave the country in May 2025. “Journalists have been suffocated: first by persecution and the threat of imprisonment, then by financial asphyxiation,” said APES director Sergio Arauz.

Judicial persecution, police surveillance, hate campaigns, cyber-harassment… Since May 2025, a repressive wave has swept through the country, forcing Salvadoran journalists to flee and destroying entire newsrooms—such as the digital magazine Mala Yerba, which had to cease operations after all of its staff were forced into exile. Most of the team from the news outlet El Faro also had to relocate to Costa Rica after receiving warnings of an imminent police operation targeting them. In addition to police surveillance and intimidation, women journalists have faced misogynistic attacks, as illustrated by Factum digital media journalist Loida Martinez Avelar, who fled the country after months of harassment linked to an investigation into corruption within the Ministry of Health.

Repression has also taken the form of a financial strangulation strategy against the media. While many newsrooms have faced equipment seizures, independent media outlets receiving foreign funding have fallen victim to the Foreign Agents Law. In force since September 2024, this law mandates compulsory registration, imposes a 30% tax, and allows fines of up to 250,000 US dollars (around 213,804 euros), making it impossible for such outlets to operate in El Salvador. Oscar Orellana, director of ARPAS—which brings together 22 associations and 17 radio stations and has had to apply for registration, still without a response—lamented the stranglehold the law places them in: “If we register, they force us to remain silent; if we don’t, they shut us down. In both cases, it means silencing the press.”

“RSF warns that El Salvador is on the verge of silencing all of its independent press. This repressive escalation marks a new stage in the country’s authoritarian drift, tightening the grip around journalism and fuelling a new wave of exile among media outlets and journalists across Central America. RSF demands that the government of Nayib Bukele immediately end the judicial persecution of journalists, repeal the Foreign Agents Law and other repressive regulations, and guarantee the safety of the press. We also call on the international community to recognise the urgency of this crisis and to increase pressure on El Salvador to respect press freedom.

Community radio stations particularly affected by repression

While they face greater difficulties operating from exile, community radio stations have been especially targeted by frequent raids, equipment seizures, and police harassment. The homes of Radio Balsamo journalists Monica Rodriguez and Steve Magana were raided in December 2024, and their equipment was confiscated. After months in hiding and constant displacement, both finally went into exile in June 2025.

Due to their very limited resources, they are also particularly vulnerable to the Foreign Agents Law. “The 30% deduction from international funds makes it impossible for community radio stations to survive. If they disappear, the media ecosystem will be reduced to official propaganda,” lamented journalist Carlos Humberto Amaya of Radio Izcanal.

Reporting from exile

Faced with the scale of the crisis, displaced media outlets have had to reorganise in exile. On 1 September, the Intermedios Journalistic Association was founded in Costa Rica, bringing together 12 independent media outlets and more than 50 exiled journalists. “The entire independent press has left the country. We continue to work as a network because, even though we are not physically in El Salvador, we keep reporting on what is happening there,” Loida Martinez Avelar told RSF.