Bukele responds to US for corrupt magistrates 3:03
(CNN Spanish) -
The Supreme Court of Justice of El Salvador offered a bonus to magistrates and judges who are 60 years old or older and resign no later than this Friday, according to a statement released on the Twitter account.
According to the statement, as of Saturday, the decree approved by the Legislative Assembly comes into force, obligatory dismissing all 60-year-old magistrates or judges or those who already have 30 years of service.
Until now there was no age limit to exercise the position.
The communiqué also establishes that those who do not resign will be "dismissed by law."
Bukele once again changes the biography on his Twitter account from 'Dictador de El Salvador' to 'The coolest Dictator in the world'
The magistrates and judges have rejected the decree since its approval.
They even took to the streets on September 7 and 15 to express their disagreement with the measure, which they consider violates judicial independence.
Protests in El Salvador against various measures of Bukele 1:59
The jurists had asked the Supreme Court of Justice to declare the decree inapplicable, since a ruling by the Constitutional Chamber in 2016 established that the reforms that "affect the structure of the Judicial Branch" are exclusive to the Supreme Court of Justice to "prevent" the president or deputies from presenting initiatives that have repercussions on the judicial system.
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The Center for Legal Studies assured that the decree is unconstitutional and considers that "judges and magistrates can and should not apply it."
Criticism for the concentration of power in El Salvador
The mandatory dismissal of magistrates and judges comes at a time when criticism against President Nayib Bukele for the concentration of power has increased.
The opposition denounces that a dictatorship is being installed in El Salvador, under the control of the Executive of the Legislative Assembly, with a pro-government majority, and of the Constitutional Chamber, whose magistrates were sworn in on May 1 after the deputies dismissed the above.
The Constitutional Chamber recently endorsed immediate presidential re-election.
That ruling leaves open the possibility of Bukele seeking reelection in 2024.
US sanctions officials from Guatemala and El Salvador 1:31
The current magistrates were included on Monday by the United States Department of State in its list of corrupt and undemocratic actors that, in general, implies that those indicated have their visa canceled and are not eligible to obtain any immigration benefit in several years.
The magistrates have not ruled on this decision.
CNN asked the magistrates for comment, but they did not respond.
Bukele, for his part, considered that the list was "pure politics and interference of the lowest" and in the Twitter message he also questioned that no one from the opposition was included.
"We are not anyone's 'backyard'," Bukele wrote in another tweet.