El Salvador

The role of US involvement in the Salvadoran election was ratcheted up a notch yesterday when right-wing US Congressmen threatened the Salvadoran electorate with political repercussions if the country elects Mauricio Funes in this Sunday’s Presidential election. In a move reminiscent of previous Salvadoran elections, Indiana Republican Dan Burton said, “Those monies that are coming from here to there I am confident will be cut, and I hope the people of El Salvador are aware of that because it will have a tremendous impact on individuals and their economy.”
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The dusty roads outside the town of Suchitoto in El Salvador are marked by omnipresent reminders of the coming elections: political propaganda painted on rocks and telephone polls, and homemade flags hanging from trees.  Yet in a ‘back to the future’ twist,’ scattered throughout these small quiet towns are deployments of Salvadoran troops who have been patrolling the region over the last several months.  […]

Over a hundred riot police, two busloads of party sympathizers, and a marching band escorted right wing Salvadoran ARENA party Presidential candidate Rodrigo Avila into the tiny town of Cinquera on Feb. 6, as part of a campaign rally that has sparked national controversy. Avila’s visit to Cinquera, which has long been considered an FMLN stronghold, led to confrontations with community members and accusations by Salvadoran Minister of Education Darlyn Meza that Cinquera’s teachers incited their students to organize a counter protest during class hours. […]

In less than two weeks, three to four million people will mobilize to vote for El Salvador’s next president. It is widely believed that the results of the March 15th election will open a new progressive chapter in the country’s long, violent history of military and civil dictatorships. A victory for leftist Farabundo Martí Front for National Liberation (FMLN) party candidates Mauricio Funes and Salvador Sanchez Cerén seems eminent. […]

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The new in-depth report, "The 2009 El Salvador Elections: Between Crisis and Change," by CISPES, NACLA, and Upside Down World reflects on El Salvador’s current situation as well as the possibilities and challenges ahead at this pivotal moment for the nation’s future. The leftist FMLN party currently holds a double-digit lead in the presidential election to be held on March 15. An FMLN victory would end 20 years of one-party rule by the main right-wing party.

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On January 18, 2009, El Salvador will hold its sixth municipal and legislative elections since the 1992 signing of the Peace Accords. This year national politicians and international officials are aiming for the most transparent and clean to date, but popular sectors criticize the electoral system and predict that past problems are likely to occur again. […]

Salvadoran Supreme Court agrees to hear environmental damage claims after bribery and heavy police violence fail to fracture opposition to the construction of private waste dump. This class action suit first in El Salvador’s history. […]

Recent polls in El Salvador show that the leftist FMLN party is 14 points ahead over the right-wing presidential candidate from the ruling party. Watch this new video previewing the elections in El Salvador.

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A Canadian mining company intends to sue El Salvador’s government for several hundred million dollars if it is not granted permission to open a widely unpopular gold and silver mine that scientists warn would have devastating effects on local water supplies.
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