Violent gang wars in El Salvador have earned the central American nation the label of “the most dangerous country in the world”.
But President Nayib Bukele had a solution: declare a ruthless war on the gangs and lock up their members in the world’s biggest and toughest prison.
This week Foreign Correspondent presents a rare look inside El Salvador’s mega prison, a state-of-the-art correctional centre capable of housing up to 40,000 prisoners.
Known as CECOT (Centre for the confinement of Terrorism) the inmates are crammed into communal cells in extremely harsh conditions.
Critics call the prison a “black hole of human rights” and there’s concern many detainees are not gang members but innocent people who are the victims of a police arrest quota system.
But the El Salvadoran government remains steadfast, proudly presenting its mega prison to the world as it continues to wage its war on crime.
Watch El Salvador’s Mega Prison on Foreign Correspondent, Thursday the 5th of September on ABC TV and iview.
Bali is ranked as one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations, but is the seemingly insatiable demand for a piece of paradise threatening the very thing that makes the island so special? This week on Foreign Correspondent reporter Bill Birtles travels to Bali to see first-hand the impact cashed up foreign developers are having on the island paradise.
The demand from holiday makers and now digital nomads is turning Bali’s iconic rice paddies and coastline into construction zones. Critics say the Bali that many know and love is now at a crossroad and that over development and under regulation will change the island of the gods forever.
The Ardern Aftermath: How progressive New Zealand swung to the right
Thursday 19 September 8pm
Across New Zealand tensions are running high with Māori protestors warning the country is facing a watershed moment on race relations.
The protesters are angry with the new agenda of the conservative coalition government which has seen the lightning rollback of Māori programs and policies.
This week on Foreign Correspondent reporter Emily Clark travels to New Zealand to find out why the country that produced the icon of the left – Jacinda Ardern – has shifted firmly to the right and what’s driving the desire to wind back the special status of Māori.
It’s the billion-dollar crime you’ve never heard of – copper theft. And it’s causing chaos in South Africa. Across the country police and armed private contractors are waging war on the criminals and gangs who are cashing in on one of the world’s most sought-after metals.
This week on Foreign Correspondent reporter Tom Joyner embeds with South African law enforcement as they hunt down the thieves who are stealing copper from the country’s essential infrastructure. The crime is causing serious disruptions to energy supply, transportation and telecommunications. Copper is critical to the production of clean energy technology, but a global shortage is driving its price to record heights. A thriving black market for copper has emerged, encouraging criminals to risk their lives to steal it.
The crucial state the Democrats don’t have in the bag. The US state of Michigan is one of a handful of battleground states that will determine who will be the next American president. This swing state has been won by Donald Trump in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020 and now the Democrats are hoping Kamala Harris’ late injection into the race will give them the boost they need to win in November. But will it?
This week on Foreign Correspondent, reporter Stephanie March goes on the hustings with grassroots Democrats and Republicans as they chase crucial votes in Michigan’s counties. At a Democrat volunteers’ event she meets celebrities like Sean Astin, famous for his roles in The Goonies and The Lord of the Rings, who’s confident America is about to elect its first woman president. But as the volunteers go door to door many voters are still undecided in a battleground contest that could swing either way.
Foreign Correspondent: Kamala’s Battleground will air on Thursday 3 October at 8:00pm on ABC TV and ABC iview.
