Statement Regarding the Entry of Machinery for the Construction of a Sanitary Landfill in San Francisco Angulo, Tecoluca, El Salvador, with the Support of Approximately 100 Members of the National Civil Police (PNC)

The undersigned organizations strongly condemn the operation carried out by the National Civil Police (PNC) on February 16th, which escorted the entry of machinery for the mega-landfill project in San Francisco Angulo, municipality of Tecoluca. The PNC entered the community with approximately 100 police officers, including special forces with heavy weapons, creating a climate of tension, intimidation, and fear in the community, which has been peacefully opposing the entry of the machinery since December of last year.

In 2018, the affected communities organized and successfully prevented the landfill from being built. At that time, the Human Rights Ombudsman's Office issued precautionary measures due to the environmental and health risks that the landfill would pose to more than 400 families in the area, as well as the fact that the site where the project was planned is known to contain the remains of victims of massacres perpetrated by the army during the armed conflict, which also constitutes a violation of the historical memory and the right to truth of the victims and their families.

In the face of new threats to the San Francisco Angulo community, we recognize the courage and commitment with which its residents have organized to denounce their resounding rejection of this project before government authorities and the world. For several weeks now, the community has maintained a constant vigil to protect the future of their community and four neighboring communities that will be similarly impacted.
We share the community's outrage at the deployment of nearly 100 state agents, as well as their concern given the history of arrests in other communities where police have raided, violating the rights of residents, including the elderly and children. We support the community's denunciation that state agents are prioritizing the project's progress to defend the interests of private entities over environmental rights, the right to health, and the right to life, all of which are threatened by the construction of the landfill.

We denounce the fact that while Nayib Bukele's government promotes its security model to the world, the state of emergency is being used to intimidate and violate the rights of the most vulnerable communities, as we witnessed in San Francisco Angulo. We recall that in El Salvador, other communities that have defended environmental, territorial, and housing rights have also faced criminalization, arbitrary detentions, and stigmatization. Cases such as that of the El Bosque community and the environmental leaders of Santa Marta, Cabañas, demonstrate the use of the judicial system to persecute and imprison people who fight to defend their land and water.

Therefore:

• We express our solidarity with the families of San Francisco Angulo and reaffirm that the defense of territory, water, and life is a legitimate right. We urge the authorities to guarantee the unrestricted respect for the human rights of the San Francisco Angulo community.
• We call upon the competent authorities to conduct a comprehensive review of the project's viability and compliance with environmental regulations, as requested by the community, and to refrain from taking any action that could cause irreversible damage while the legal appeals filed are pending.
• We call upon the international community and human rights organizations to maintain active monitoring of the situation.

February 20, 2026

Signatory organizations:

Alma de Izote, Chicago, Illinois, EEUU
Alternativa de Reivindicación Comunitaria y Ambientalista de Honduras
Bayan, DMV, EEUU
Bios Iguana, A.C.
Capybara Colectiva, Washington, EEUU
Chicago Religious Leadership Network (CRLN), Chicago, Illinois, EEUU
Climate Alliance of the South Sound (CASS), Tacoma, WA, EEUU
Colectivo La Chiltota, Washington, D.C., EEUU
Colectivo RAIS Popular, Washington, D.C., EEUU
Comité en Solidaridad con el Pueblo de El Salvador (CISPES), EEUU
Comité de Solidaridad con El Salvador en México, Ciudad de México, MX
Comité por la Defensa de Derechos Humanos y la Tierra en El Salvador, Los Angeles, EEUU
Comunidad Político Intercultural Kuska Ñan, Washington, D.C., EEUU
Frente Intercontinental la Ventana a la Lucha Popular en El Salvador, Global
International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines-San Francisco (ICHRP-SF), EEUU
International Coalition for HR in the Philippines Washington Regional (ICHRP WA), EEUU
International League of People’s Struggle (ILPS) Baltimore-DMV Chapter, EEUU
Medio Comunitario Boca Nostra de Hermosillo, Sonora, México
Oficina Ecumenica por la Paz y la Justicia, Munich, Alemania
Resistencia Comunitaria, Los Angeles, California, EEUU
Students Organizing Against Repression (SOAR Coalition-CSUN), Northridge, California
SOLIFONDOS, Suiza
Solinetz Zentralamerika (Redsol), Suiza
Tanod Lupa “Earth Guardian” FFPS, Seattle, WA, EEUU
Transborder Experiences of Central American University Students (TECUS-CSUN), Northridge, California 
Unidad de Defensa de Derechos Humanos y Comunitarios, UNIDEHC, El Salvador
Agrupación Un Salto de Vida, El Salto, México
Un Salto a la Vida, Jalisco, México