Blogging From El Salvador #8

On leaving El Salvador, my sense is that this is a country in disarray, yet still has a sense of hope. The United States contributed to leaving the country in shambles by supporting the repressive right-wing government with more than $5 billion during the civil war from 1980 to 1992. The money flowed, in spite of the fact that that the government and its paramilitary guards killed nuns, lay workers, Jesuit priests, and thousands of innocent civilians. Yes, we also heard of some unjust killings by guerrillas as well. The result of the civil war was a country whose infrastructure was destroyed and a people that one worker described as living under a blanket of post traumatic stress.

Yet the hope is the people is clear. We heard from students who have elaborate plans for small businesses and community centers back in their villages. We met with the former Minister of Labor who listed important accomplishments in the area of human rights for laborers. The truce between major gangs that has been in force since March is apparently not simply a matter of smoke and mirrors, providing a true opportunity to institutionalize some progress in quelling violence. And although the Supreme Court is under attack by members of the Assembly for asserting its independence, a magistrate of the Court with whom we met is confident that its progressive rulings and its legitimacy will be upheld.

One thing is very clear, the U.S. owes a lot to El Salvador because of the mess that we helped to visit on its people, its institutions, and its psyche. We should all support its democratic institutions and its people who are striving to maintain justice for all of its residents.

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