Peru’s Fujimori Seeks 29 October Visit to Bukele Prison

Keiko Fujimori, now Peru’s president, speaking during a debate in Peru’s Congress when she was a lawmaker. File photo, 2010. (Photo: Congreso de la República del Perú, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

PERU · POLITICS

Peru’s President Keiko Fujimori wants to tour CECOT, the Bukele prison in El Salvador where the US sent 252 Venezuelan deportees in 2025. Her government asked the Senate for permission in a request filed on Monday 5 October.

The visit would run from 28 to 31 October at the invitation of the government of El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele. Fujimori campaigned on building a mega-prison for high-risk inmates modelled on CECOT, Infobae reported.

What the Senate Is Being Asked to Approve

Fujimori and Prime Minister Luis Galarreta, head of the cabinet, signed the letter to Senate President Miguel Ángel Torres of Fuerza Popular. The Council of Ministers, as the cabinet is known, approved the trips on Friday 2 October.

Peru’s president needs the Senate’s permission for trips abroad, so the government filed a draft legislative resolution with official letter No. 283-2026-PR. Galarreta, who is also first vice president, would run the presidency while she is away.

Fujimori took office on Tuesday 28 July and leads Fuerza Popular (Popular Force), the conservative party at the centre of who holds power in Peru.

Her first trip abroad as president was to the UN General Assembly in New York. The Senate approved it on Wednesday 16 September by 34 votes to 12, with 3 abstentions.

Her Agenda in El Salvador

On Thursday 29 October she would meet Gustavo Villatoro, El Salvador’s minister of justice and public security, and visit CECOT, the letter says. A private meeting with Bukele is set for 5 p.m., followed by wider talks with ministers and a dinner in her honour.

On Friday 30 October she would visit Hospital Rosales with Health Minister Francisco Alabi, then meet Education Minister Karla Trigueros and see a public school. Trigueros would brief her on “Dos Escuelas por Día” (Two Schools a Day), a programme to repair run-down schools or build new ones.

The letter says the visit would “reinforce the bilateral relationship” through an exchange of experience in security, justice, education and health. It names “the fight against transnational organised crime” and “strengthening the prison system” as priorities for Peru.

Peru and El Salvador have stepped up talks on security cooperation in recent years, the letter adds.

CECOT, short for Terrorism Confinement Centre, is the symbol of Bukele’s war on gangs and can hold 40,000 inmates, Infobae reported. How many prisoners the Bukele prison holds is still unknown, the outlet added.

The CECOT mega-prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, which Fujimori would tour on 29 October. File photo, 2023. (Photo: Casa Presidencial El Salvador, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons)

Why Washington Is Watching

In March and April 2025 the Trump administration sent 252 Venezuelan migrants to the Bukele prison. That is the finding of Human Rights Watch (HRW), a New York-based rights group, and Cristosal, a Salvadoran one.

Of the 238 flown on 15 March, 137 were removed under the Alien Enemies Act, a 1798 wartime law. The groups’ report of 12 November 2025 says the detainees suffered torture and other abuse until they were sent to Venezuela on 18 July 2025.

At least 48.8% of those deported had no criminal history in the United States, the report found.

Washington is courting Lima as well: Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Fujimori in Lima on Thursday 10 September. Afterwards she announced that Peru would join the US-backed “Shield of the Americas” against organised crime.

Rubio called the gangs “terrorist groups” that extort people, according to Peru’s presidency. Fujimori’s government has asked Congress for powers to declare such gangs “hostile groups and terrorist groups”.

Then a Summit in Madrid

From Monday 2 to Friday 6 November she would attend the 30th Ibero-American Summit in Madrid, held on 4 and 5 November. The summit brings together the countries of Latin America with Spain, Portugal and Andorra.

Peru wants to use it to push cooperation against organised crime and planning for disasters such as El Niño, the letter says. Leaders are expected to adopt a Declaration of Madrid covering digital transformation, artificial intelligence and other areas.

She would land back in Peru on 31 October, leaving Sunday 1 November as her only full day at home before Madrid.

What It Means for You

For Americans following US deportation policy, Peru’s new leader is studying the same Bukele prison that Washington used for Venezuelan deportees in 2025. The visit follows her entry into the US-backed Shield of the Americas after Rubio’s trip to Lima.

For investors, Fujimori told the New York Stock Exchange closing-bell event on Thursday 24 September that Peru treats foreign and local investors alike. She also named crime and a new El Niño weather event as major challenges.

For travellers and companies in Peru, nothing changes yet. The trip is a visit, not a new law or a prison contract.

What Is Not Known

The Senate has not announced when it will vote on the request. The government has not disclosed what either trip will cost.

It is not known whether Peru and El Salvador will sign any agreement during the visit. Nor is it known when Peru would start building the CECOT-style mega-prison Fujimori promised in her campaign, or what it would cost.

More: Peru news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Peru’s president need the Senate’s permission to travel?

Peru’s president needs the Senate’s authorisation for trips abroad, which the government requests through a draft legislative resolution. The Senate approved Fujimori’s September trip to New York by 34 votes to 12.

What is CECOT?

CECOT, the Terrorism Confinement Centre in Tecoluca, is El Salvador’s mega-prison and the best-known Bukele prison. It can hold 40,000 inmates, and the US sent 252 Venezuelan deportees there in 2025.

Does Peru plan to build its own CECOT?

Fujimori campaigned on a mega-prison for high-risk inmates inspired by CECOT, Infobae reported. In September she sought Inter-American Development Bank experience and financing to expand Peru’s prisons, her office said.

Who is Nayib Bukele?

Bukele is El Salvador’s president, known for a crackdown on gangs that produced CECOT. His government invited Fujimori, and the two would hold a private meeting on Thursday 29 October.

Sources: Senate of Peru: official letter No. 283-2026-PR from President Fujimori and PM Galarreta (draft legislative resolution 12/2026-2031-S, filed 5 October), 2 October 2026; Senate of Peru: draft legislative resolution authorising the trips to El Salvador and Spain, 5 October 2026; Senate of Peru: vote record on the president’s September trip (34 for, 12 against, 3 abstentions), 16 September 2026; Andina (Peru’s state news agency): Executive asks the Senate to authorise the president’s trips to El Salvador and Spain, 5 October 2026; Presidency of Peru: Fujimori announces Peru joins the Shield of the Americas after meeting Marco Rubio, 10 September 2026; Presidency of Peru: Fujimori at the New York Stock Exchange closing bell, 24 September 2026; Presidency of Peru: Fujimori and the IDB discuss prison construction, 25 September 2026; Presidency of Peru: directory of officials, 6 October 2026; Presidency of the Council of Ministers (PCM): directory of officials, 6 October 2026; Human Rights Watch and Cristosal: “You Have Arrived in Hell” report on Venezuelans at CECOT, 12 November 2025; Reporters Without Borders (RSF): statement on President Keiko Fujimori, 29 July 2026; La República: Keiko Fujimori asks the Senate to authorise trips to El Salvador and Spain, 5 October 2026; El Comercio: Executive seeks authorisation for Fujimori’s trips, 5 October 2026; Infobae Perú: Fujimori requests two consecutive trips, 5 October 2026.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief