Peru's President Keiko Fujimori wants a close look at El Salvador's most famous prison. Her government asked the Senate on Monday, October 5, for permission to travel to El Salvador from October 28 to 31 and tour CECOT, the high-security facility linked to President Nayib Bukele. Bukele's government extended the invitation. Fujimori campaigned on building a mega-prison modeled on CECOT, Infobae reported.
The Request
Fujimori and Prime Minister Luis Galarreta, head of the cabinet, signed a letter to Senate President Miguel Ángel Torres of Fuerza Popular. The Council of Ministers approved the trips on Friday, October 2, five days before today. Peru's president needs Senate permission to travel abroad, and the government submitted draft legislative resolution official letter No. 283-2026-PR. Galarreta, who is also first vice president, would take over the presidency while Fujimori is away.
The Senate hasn't announced a vote date. Fujimori, leader of conservative Fuerza Popular, took office on Tuesday, July 28, 71 days ago. Her first foreign trip, to the UN General Assembly in New York, won Senate approval on Wednesday, September 16, by 34 votes to 12, with three abstentions.
The Itinerary
The schedule is packed. On Thursday, October 29, Fujimori is set to meet Gustavo Villatoro, El Salvador's minister of justice and public security, and tour CECOT. At 5 p.m., she meets Bukele privately, then holds talks with ministers and attends a dinner in her honour. On Friday, October 30, she's scheduled to visit Hospital Rosales with Health Minister Francisco Alabi, meet Education Minister Karla Trigueros and visit a public school. Trigueros is expected to brief her on "Dos Escuelas por Día" ("Two Schools a Day"), a programme to repair run-down schools or build new ones.
The government's letter says the visit would "reinforce the bilateral relationship" by exchanging experience in security, justice, education and health. It identifies "the fight against transnational organised crime" and "strengthening the prison system" as priorities. Peru and El Salvador have increased security-cooperation talks in recent years, the letter says.
Security Agenda and Scrutiny
CECOT, short for Terrorism Confinement Centre, sits in Tecoluca and can hold 40,000 inmates, Infobae reported. No one knows how many prisoners it holds now. The facility has faced sharp criticism. Human Rights Watch and Cristosal, a Salvadoran group, found that the Trump administration sent 252 Venezuelan migrants there in March and April 2025. Of 238 people flown on March 15, authorities removed 137 under the Alien Enemies Act, a 1798 wartime law. A report dated November 12, 2025, said detainees suffered torture and other abuse until authorities sent them to Venezuela on July 18, 2025. At least 48.8% of those deported had no criminal history in the United States, the report found.
Fujimori's security stance has shifted quickly alongside Washington's. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met her in Lima on Thursday, September 10. After the meeting, she announced that Peru would join the US-backed "Shield of the Americas" against organised crime. Rubio called gangs "terrorist groups" that extort people, according to Peru's presidency. Her government has asked Congress for powers to declare such gangs "hostile groups and terrorist groups."
Investors and Financing
The security push also carries an economic message. At a New York Stock Exchange closing-bell event on Thursday, September 24, Fujimori said Peru treats foreign and local investors alike and identified crime and a new El Niño weather event as major challenges. In September, her office said she also sought Inter-American Development Bank experience and financing to expand Peru's prisons.
A Crowded Calendar
Fujimori returns to Lima on October 31, leaving Sunday, November 1, as her only full day at home before the Madrid trip. She's scheduled to attend the 30th Ibero-American Summit there from Monday, November 2, to Friday, November 6, with the summit itself on November 4 and 5. Peru's letter says the country wants to promote cooperation against organised crime and disaster planning, including for El Niño. Leaders are expected to adopt a Declaration of Madrid covering digital transformation, artificial intelligence and other areas.
Questions remain open. The Senate hasn't said when it will vote. The government hasn't disclosed the cost of either trip. No one knows whether Peru and El Salvador will sign an agreement during the visit, or when or at what cost Peru might build the CECOT-style prison Fujimori promised.
Why This Matters:
Crime and prison capacity sit at the centre of Fujimori's mandate, and she's taking that agenda abroad within three months of taking office. The visit tests a core governing question: can Peru copy a model that has drawn documented human rights criticism while keeping its institutions and legal standing intact? Taxpayers don't yet know what either trip costs or what a CECOT-style prison would run. Investors, whom she courted on Wall Street, will watch whether tougher security policy comes with transparent budgets, financing terms and respect for due process. The Senate vote will show how much institutional scrutiny follows her security agenda.