The government of El Salvador has denied allegations of human rights abuses against the local population. The world’s first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, was the source that ignited these claims in 2016. Despite this denial by the country and their Salvadoran citizens living abroad, international pressures are expected to continue to mount over time.
The “el salvador bitcoin bond news” is a story about the Bitcoin bond that would be issued by El Salvador. The bonds would be issued to raise money for the country’s infrastructure. However, the government has now been accused of human rights violations and it appears that the bonds will be suspended indefinitely.
El Salvador’s Finance Minister Alejandro Zelaya announced that the country would delay the release of its planned billion-dollar Bitcoin (BTC) bond due to price volatility and unpredictable market conditions stemming from the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian conflict.
The announcement comes as Amnesty International has accused the Salvadoran government of “blatant violations of human rights and criminalizing people living in poverty.”
Zelaya was asked if the situation had changed with the $1 billion Bitcoin bond issuance a “few months ago” in a June 1 interview on the local news show “Frente a Frente” (Face-to-Face).
“No, not yet,” he replied, according to a rough translation. “The [Bitcoin] price remains disrupted by the situation in Ukraine.” “The changes are consistent in the short term,” he noted, “but it always tends to increase in value over the long term.”
“There is a future and an economic innovation [in Bitcoin] which we must claim.”
El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele first unveiled the bond proposal in November 2021. Half of the projected $1 billion would be used to build a “Bitcoin City” near a volcano, aiming to using the volcano’s geothermal energy to power Bitcoin miners. † The remaining half of the assets are invested in Bitcoin.
The $1 billion bond was set to go on sale in mid-March 2022, but in a March interview, Zelaya said the launch would be delayed due to market volatility, suggesting a launch date in June and a time frame through September 2022.
Fears that El Salvador would default on an $800 million bond maturing in January 2023 prompted Moody’s to downgrade the country’s credit rating on May 4, citing a “lack of a viable financing strategy.”
The government of El Salvador has been buying Bitcoin since September 2021, with Bukele stating on May 9 that the nation had acquired another 500 BTC. It is reported that the government’s BTC investment has lost more than $35.6 million so far.
“Human rights catastrophe,” said Amnesty International.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International, a human rights organization, accused the government of El Salvador of “gross human rights violations” such as arbitrary arrests, ill-treatment and torture of detainees.
President Bukele declared a state of emergency (SOE) on March 27 in response to a rise in murders, which the government has blamed on gangs and organized crime. Since then, the SOE has been extended twice more.
According to the human rights organization, the SOE has amended legislation and legal processes that jeopardize the right to a fair trial, the presumption of innocence, effective remedies and access to an impartial judge.
Related: What Does the Current Slump Mean for Bitcoin Adoption in El Salvador?
More than 35,000 people have been arrested in less than three months as a result of the crackdown, resulting in the incarceration of 1.7 percent of the country’s population over the age of 18, resulting in overcrowding of more than 250 percent of the prison capacity.
#Seguimos https://t.co/Dzcs18bjpA 0 murders
June 2, 2022 — Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele)
Despite the atrocities, many El Salvadorians support Bukele’s tough tactics, as surveys show his popularity. According to the most recent survey by local media on June 1, the current president has an approval rating of nearly 87 percent.
The “what is a bitcoin bond” is a type of bond that has been introduced to investors in the cryptocurrency world. The idea behind this is to make it easier for people who are interested in investing but not that familiar with cryptocurrencies.
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