El Salvador Sets the Example for Success

          Throughout history the countries of Central America have continuously struggled with shaping their identities. Since these countries were not in the highest positions on the list of global suppliers of natural resources or economic power houses, they did not always get top priority from the super powers of the world. However, there was a time during the mid 1980's that Central America did receive a lot of attention. These countries were receiving the attention of both super powers of that time, the United States and the Soviet Union. This was yet another region that the Cold War Super Powers were courting.

          In today's international political scene, there are many changes in regimes. Some have been initiated from within and some regimes have been changed by international coalitions. If these changes are so important, one would expect to see only the most powerful nations involved. However, why is the smallest country in Central America participating? El Salvador may be involved because the country itself has struggled through numerous regimes and a deadly civil war before beginning their successful democratic way of governance. It is quite possible that El Salvador is becoming an example of how democracy can prosper, even in countries that have been struggling for years.

          This article will provide some information about the internal struggles of El Salvador from its independence to the present. The areas that will be addressed in this article will be a brief history of El Salvador to give the reader a background of the country and the determination of its people. Additionally, this article will look at aspects of the government and the population to determine what was the problems leading up to the Civil War during the 1980's and how the country recovered and became a moderately stable democratic society. Finally, the article will provide some details of El Salvador's involvement in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

          El Salvador has been reluctant to accept rule from outside parties throughout its history. Spain's first attempt to gain rule of this country in 1524 was unsuccessful due to the resistance of the indigenous people. However, in the following year, Spain was successful in acquiring the country as a territory. For about 300 years, El Salvador was being used by Spain for its natural resources. During this time, Spain granted the elite large areas of land. These practices would develop the two classes in El Salvador for many centuries to come.

          An example of the rebounding ability of this country was during the early twentieth century. El Salvador was quickly becoming a world leader in the export of coffee. This new economic growth stimulated the separation of the wealthy and poor by displacement. The wealthy landowners simply displaced the indigenous people to acquire more land for the production of coffee. When the world financial market was hit hard in the 1930's, El Salvador was greatly affected. This event sparked the desire for the working class people to unite and create an opposing political party.

          And some scholars in the academic world debate if they were responsible for the rebellion in 1932. Some academias believe it was the work of the Communist Party and some believe it was the tyranny of the military controlled government. The rebellion of 1932 was not very successful. This insurrection was started because of the inequality of land ownership. It was started in the coffee growing regions of western El Salvador and lasted only a few days. Several thousand insurgents attacked the local symbols of power, targeting the elite and their property. Multiple municipal buildings were burned and all of their records were destroyed. ¹ 

          The government was under the newly empowered General Maximiliano Hern ndez-Mart¡nez. His military commanders responded with the killings of the indigenous population. The estimated number killed range from as few as 10,000 to over 30,000 people. ²  The response from the military sent a message to the country that rebellions would not be an option for the people. Most of the indigenous people were afraid to wear their traditional dresses for fear that they would be killed by the army. This rebellion was another example of how the people of El Salvador did not support insurrections. It changed the way the people would react towards the government for almost fifty years. Revolutions from within the military or government are a different story. The same leader, General Hern ndez-Mart¡nez came into power by a militarily led revolution. The government of El Salvador has been primarily one that has been run by the military.

          The se leaders were appointed or "elected" and all of them were part of the ruling party of the time. There were not any multiparty elections until 1972. In 1972, the mayor of San Salvador José Napoleon Duarte was elected over the government's Party, the National Conciliation Party (PCN), whose candidate was Colonel Arturo Armando Molina. The results of this election were not accepted by the government. This denouncement led to a coup attempt by Duarte and some military leaders who opposed the government's decisions. The people did not support this coup because of the amount of distrust of the military. Duarte and the select military leaders who attempted this coup were captured and exiled.

          The failures in the election system put the government at a disadvantage to the people. The government would have to change to gain the support of the people. The pivotal time in the history of the El Salvadoran government was in 1979. October 15^th, 1979 was the day that General Carlos Humberto Romero's government would fall and transformation in the government of El Salvador would begin. The new reforms included human rights concerns, the disbandment of corrupt paramilitary groups and changes in the electoral process.

          The beginnings of a civil war were already under way when General Romero was peacefully removed from power. The Salvadoran Communist Party (PCS) was beginning to emerge in the 1970's. The leader of the PCS, Shaffic Handel, realized that the party would not be able to gain power through the electoral process. Although the PCS was not officially recognized in El Salvador, Handel was able to infiltrate labor unions and other non-violent means in pursuit of power. ⁴ 

          The Christian Democratic Party (PDC) was able to make agreements with the military and change the population's perception of elections. Along with the changes to the elections, the PDC wanted to introduce country wide reforms to adjust the economic situation in the country. The most influential reform was the agrarian reform, which will be discussed later in the paper. In 1982 the first democratic elections were held for congress. This election was supported and monitored by international organizations and these elections inspired the population. The newly elected congress emplaced a temporary president, Alvaro Magana, until elections could be organized in 1984. The military maintained many of its positions in the Cabinet and control of the actions against the insurgents during the civil war. The civilian authorities attempted to assume control over the military, but were not effective in their attempts. The control over the military by the civilian leadership would not occur until after the end of the civil war.

          The elections for the presidency were held in 1984. José Napoleon Duarte ⁵  was the first civilian elected as president in an open electoral process. This election was also supervised and approved by the international community and was reorganized again during the Peace Accords in the early 1990's. The reorganization would allow for the opposition party to become part of the political process.

          Afte r the official declaration of the end of the civil war, El Salvador's government and its processes began to take a democratic shape. Since 1992 there have been an increasing number of voter registrations and higher percentages of voter turn out. This is due to the trends that the voters are gaining confidence in the pluralist political system. In the most recent elections ⁶  approximately 66% of the registered voters elected Antonio Saca, a candidate from the ARENA - Alianza Republicana Nacionalista (Nationalist Republican Alliance) party. Saca's main opponent was Shaffic Handel, from the FMLN - Frente Farabundo Marti para la Liberaction Nacional (National Liberation Front Farabundo Mart¡) party. ⁷ 

          The government of El Salvador has progressed since the dark times of the oppressive military regimes and questionable activities during the civil war. The area that may have been responsible for the civil war is inequality of the economic classes of the country. This was briefly mentioned earlier in the paper and now the paper will look at Roy Prosterman's Index for Rural Instability (IRI) ⁸  to determine if there are any contributing factors from the population and the civil war. First, an explanation of Prosterman's IRI is necessary.

          In 1976, Roy Prosterman simplified the issue of peasants and revolutions. He first defines three categories of peasant upheavals:

- Category 1 (and the dominant category, in terms both of lives lost and of political impact): conflicts in which peasants have been mobilized along "class" or economic lines, primarily around the issue of land tenure, and sometimes secondarily around the issue of agricultural credit. - Category 2: conflicts in which peasants have been mobilized along geographic or tribal lines, chiefly around the issue of independence or "nation- state" status. - Category 3: riot like conflicts without any clear structure or issue, stemming chiefly from the frustrations of deep poverty. ⁹ 

          Cle arly El Salvador's civil war can be categorized in category one. The intent of the communist party (PCS) prior to the civil war was to disrupt the democratic system that was emerging. Since the PCS already recognized that they would not be able to infiltrate the political system, they would attempt to organize the peasants based on the inequalities of the economy. There is an estimate that upwards to 68% of the population in El Salvador was living below the poverty line at the beginning of the civil war. ¹⁰  This would give the opposition an opportunity to entice the population to join its revolution to destroy the government. Additional intentions of the opposition will be discussed later in the paper.

          The second part of Prosterman's simplified IRI is the values of which the prediction of a revolution or conflict could occur. These values are defined as the percentage of landless peasants in a country or region. ¹¹  There have been numerous articles written about the agrarian reforms in El Salvador. These represent the idea that there was a problem within the domestic economic issues of the country and they needed to be addressed. Some of the leaders in the government prior to the civil war attempted to implement agrarian reforms but they were not successful.

          Acc ording to Prosterman when a countries percentage of landless reaches 30% or more, they are at a "substantial danger" level. And when the index reaches 40% or greater, the country is in "critical danger" of a revolution. The "landless peasants" percentage in 1976 was estimated to be around 20%, according to Prosterman. In 1980 that number was believed to be closer to 70%. ¹²  The Junta in El Salvador in 1980 was attempting to adjust these figures to keep the PCS from using this as a way to start a revolution.

          The possibility of a revolution from the landless peasants in 1980 could have been a repeat of Salvadorian history. As stated earlier, the revolution of 1932 was believed to be incited by the communist party and included the landless peasants of the early twentieth century. However, this time the government delivered on its promises of agrarian reform. In the early months of 1980, "Phase I" of the land reform and "Declaration 207 -- Land-to-the-tenants'" was enacted which transferred about 44% of the cultivated land and adjusted the landless peasant population to 11%. ¹³  According to Prosterman's IRI, the timing of a revolution is not dependent exclusively on the factors of the landless peasants. He states there are additional factors that must be considered. This is where he defines four additional facilitating factors for a revolution.

1. Ideology, leadership, communications. 2. Onerousness of landlord system and availability of credit. 3. Traditions of arms bearing bellicosity among the peasantry, versus deep- rooted pacifism, passivity, fatalism. 4. Effectiveness of government control and repression. ¹⁴ 

          Sal vadorians had many contingents to overcome if they were going to avoid the civil war. The additional factors listed are good reasons for the civil war. The leadership and ideology of the government in the late 1970's was changing for the better of the population. However, they still were not able to effectively communicate their goals to the people, because there needed to be time for adjustment and trust to grow between the two groups. This weakness was seized by the guerilla groups and they used it to ignite their operations.

          The land system was changing, but had been a disadvantage to the people since the beginning of history for this country. There was always a separation of the classes and like most Third World nations; there was a large gap between the rich and the poor. This was another advantage that the insurgent forces wanted to capture. The opposition was betting on the fact that if they could convince enough of the poor, they would rise up and join their forces. However, because of the active agrarian reforms, the leftist groups could only bring about 2,000 protestors into the streets of San Salvador in May of 1980, where as in January of the same year, they were able to truck in around 100,000 protesters. ¹⁵ 

          The fourth factor was the most difficult for the government of El Salvador. They were not very effective in control or repression. This led to the poor decisions by the leaders to condone the actions of the Death Squads. These groups were responsible for many deaths; the most infamous was the assassination of Oscar Romero. Romero was an Archbishop who was an advocate of social change. One day after Romero addressed the military forces, pleading for them to obey the law of God and stop the killing, he was assassinated. This was a disappointing event for the Salvadorians, which tainted their perception of the government and its policies. This event also had affects on the international scale as well. These events were fuel for the guerrilla forces to support their cause.

          The opposition was a divided, but commonly focused, communist party. The political organizations included: The Salvadoran Communist Party (PCS), Farabundo Mart¡ Popular Liberation Forces (FPL), People's Revolutionary Army (ERP or PRS), Armed Forces of National Resistance (FARN or RN), and the Revolutionary Party of Central American Workers (PRTC). Additionally, there were some key military insurgency organizations. They were the Armed Forces of Liberation (FAL) from the PCS, Popular Army of Liberation (ELP) and Popular Liberation Armed Forces (FAPL) from the FPL, Salvadoran Revolution Party or Revolutionary Army (ERP) from ERP, Armed Forces of National Resistance or National Resistance (RN) from the FARN-RN, and the Armed Commando of Liberation (CAL) from the PRTC. ¹⁶ 

          The se organizations were reorganized as the Farabundo Mart¡ National Liberation Front (FMLN) as the coordinating body and the front organization the Revolutionary Democratic Front (FDR) was created to attract international political support." ¹⁷  This organization began collecting international support, mainly from communist countries. Additionally they received training and support from the Sandinistas in neighboring Nicaragua. These ties to the international communist organizations were enough to get the United States involved. There was the fear that the "domino theory" would take place in Central America. ¹⁸  The FMLN initiated their "final offensive" in January of 1981. This did not succeed, mainly due to the lack of support from the population. There were successful free and democratic elections occurring and the changes in the agrarian reforms diminished the power of the FMLN politically.

          The FMLN-FDR would continue its struggle for the right to gain power in El Salvador. However, there were two international incidents that led to the loss of power for the guerrilla forces. The first event was the fall of the Soviet Union in the late 1980's. Without the support of the Communist Super Power, many attempts of communism around the world failed. The second event was the loss of power of the Sandinistas in Nicaragua. Because the FMLN-FDR insurgents were receiving the training and supplies through the Sandinistas, they lost that connection when the Sandinistas lost power.

          The se international issues changed the priority of the United States' foreign policy towards El Salvador. Initially, during President Jimmy Carter's administration, the main concern with El Salvador was the human rights violations. Since these violations occurred on both sides, President Carter eliminated financial support for the military of El Salvador. However the Carter Administration could not focus its support in Central America. In addition to domestic issues, President Carter had additional international concerns in the late 1970's, mainly the Iran Hostage Crisis.

          Wh en President Reagan was elected in 1980, he was very eager to join in the fight against communism. Since the weapons and training was originating mainly from Nicaragua, the Reagan administration attempted to negotiate a peaceful settlement through diplomatic channels. Assistant Secretary of State Thomas O. Enders visited Managua in August 1981 and offered to renew economic assistance in exchange for an end to Sandinista support for the guerrillas. ¹⁹  The Sandinistas never responded to the offers.

          A year later, a second attempt was made by the United States for Nicaragua to change to a pluralistic political system that it had made with the agreements with the Organization of American States (OAS). Since the direct efforts of the United States were not working, the Reagan Administration supported the efforts of other Central and Southern American countries that were attempting to settle the issues of the civil war. Most of the actions taken by the Reagan Administration have been tainted by the public's perception due to the covert operations that were later exposed.

          The United States was willing to invest a large amount of money and some military assistance to insure that the communist backed insurgents would not succeed. Between 1980 and 1990, the United States spent more than $4.5 billion in El Salvador ($1.3 billion in the form of direct military assistance, and over $850 million in unsubsidized credits.) In addition, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) spent an estimated $500 million dollars to support the Salvadoran government, promote democracy, and prevent the establishment of a communist regime. ²⁰ 

          Wh en President George H. Bush came into office, the FMLN-FDR had lost a lot of momentum. Additionally, they still did not have sufficient support to become involved in the political processes of the country. There were some internal negotiations that were making progress between the government and the FMLN. Furthermore, the enticements from other Latin American countries for the FMLN to end the civil war were very inviting.

          Des pite disagreements within the Reagan and Bush Administrations, both Presidents were inclined to support the elected Presidents of El Salvador. Following the 1984 election of Jose Napoleon Duarte, "the Regan administration cooperated closely with him despite the displeasure of many in Reagan's own party over Duarte's nationalization of banking and of the marketing of sugar and coffee." ²¹  President Bush faced the same indifferences within his administration when Alfedo Cristiani was elected in 1989 and some Democratic Congressmen disagreed with the political party of Cristiani. However, the support provided by both Presidents Reagan and Bush allowed the democratic process in El Salvador to gain legitimacy in the international political realm.

          Duri ng the peace negotiations, representatives from the Salvadoran government, the FMLN, the Catholic Church, the United Nations and the OAS were involved the peace process. There were multiple meetings between these organizations, but the United States found itself being in an observational role. The leaders of the FMLN did not want the United States playing a major role in the peace accords. Because of the increasing domestic issues, the United States was satisfied with performing the role of an observer.

          Foll owing the successful peace negations, El Salvador developed multiple political parties, to include the FMLN. If you look at the organization of El Salvador today, it can be considered a functioning democracy. The country has a proportional, pluralistic democratic system. According to the data from Freedomhouse.org, the country is considered to achieve the rankings of a "2" in political rights, a "3" in civil liberties, and its status is considered to be "Free." ²²  The country is considered to have a perception of a high level of corruption, but the population believes in the democratic process.

          Foll owing over ten years of democratic elections, the relationship between the United States and El Salvador has continued to be beneficial for both countries. The United States has continued to provide financial assistance to El Salvador. Following some of the most severe natural disasters, the relationship between the countries strengthened. The United States provided $37.7 million in assistance following Hurricane Mitch in 1998 and $168 million in reconstruction assistance following two major earthquakes in 2001. ²³ 

          Rec ently El Salvador was the first country in Central America to sign up for the Dominican-Republic, Central American Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA.) The countries involved in this agreement are: the United States, the Dominican- Republic, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua. DR- CAFTA addresses the areas of increasing workers rights, intellectual property protection, environmental standards, legal protection for US investors, and expanded markets for US farmers. ²⁴  This free trade agreement should improve international financial relationships between the United States and Central America, much like the success of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

          The re has been more than a financial relationship between the U.S. and El Salvador. There has been a lasting relationship with military training and exercises. Despite pressures from the FMLN party and the disapproval of over 70% of the population, El Salvador has supported the United States and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Since August of 2003, El Salvador has had a presence of troops in support of OIF.

          El Salvador has provided four contingencies and is contemplating a fifth. The first rotation (August 2003 -- February 2004) consisted of Special Forces with a mission of security and stability operation vicinity of An Najaf, Iraq. During, the second rotation (February 2004 -- August 2004), the Salvadorians raised the number of troops deployed to 380, this was the maximum allowed by the Legislative Assembly. Their mission was similar to the first rotations. The third and fourth rotation of Salvadorian troops (August 2004 -- August 2005) shifted their focus to reconstruction projects. ²⁵ 

          The commitment of the El Salvadorian government to provide continued support for OIF demonstrates that they believe in democracy. Some critics may think that only 380 soldiers do not make a difference, but they can. Combined, the third and fourth rotations have completed over 114 reconstruction task and projects. These projects have a monetary value in excess of $4.6 million, but the example that El Salvador is setting is invaluable to any country that inspires to become or supports a functional democracy. ²⁶ 

          This article defined the history of the people and the government of El Salvador and the events that each group has endured, to create a democratic state. Like many countries in Latin America, the political system has changed over time. El Salvador has been successful at maintaining its democracy since the end of their civil war in 1992. The involvement of the United States and other international regimes set an example for El Salvador to follow.

          The re is a solid government in El Salvador and it is very capable of making its own decisions, without having to feel pressure from the international community. The efforts to support the international effort in Iraq may be directly related to the assistance that was given to El Salvador during the 1980's and early 1990's. After years of democracy, El Salvador has an example to share with the international community. Through the efforts of the people, the government and international organizations, El Salvador is succeeding as a democratic state.

^1. Eric Ching, "In Search of the Party: The Communist Party, the Comintern, and the Peasant Rebellion of 1932 in El Salvador," The Americas. Vol. 55, No. 2 (Oct., 1998), 204-239.BACK

^2. Ibid., 206.BACK

^3. Robert Armstrong and Janet Shenk, "El Salvador -- Why a Revolution?" NACLA Report on the Americas. Vol. XIV, No. 4 (July -- August 1980), 46.BACK

^4. Salvador A. Giralt- Barraza, "On the Road to Democracy: Civil-Military Relations in El Salvador," Masters of Science, Thesis. Naval Postgraduate School, December 1998.BACK

^5. This is the same José Napoleon Duarte who won the elections in 1972 but was denied by the military government from taking office and subsequently exiled. BACK

^6. The most recent elections were Presidential elections held in March of 2004. This percentage of voter turn out is the highest recorded in Salvadoran political history.BACK

^7. This information was obtained from www.electionworld.org.BACK

^8. Roy L. Prosterman, "'IRI': A Simplified Predictive Index of Rural Instability" Comparitive Politics. Vol. 8, No. 3, Special Issue on Peasants and Revolution. (April, 1976), 339-353.BACK

^9. Ibid, 341.BACK

^10. The Central American Refugee Center (CARECEN), www.icomm.ca/carecen accessed May 10, 2005.BACK

^11. Prosterman, 339. Prosterman's definition is as follows: "The present article considers "peasant" to encompass all persons living in an economically less developed society, whose primary source of livelihood comes from tilling the land or animal husbandry. The term "landless peasantry" is used here to mean all such persons to the extent that they have no ownership or ownership-like security of tenure on the land which constitutes that source of livelihood. Thus, they are included whether, for other purposes of categorization, they may be considered itinerant farm laborers, full-time farm laborers, sharecroppers, tenant farmers, squatters without secure farming rights, or herdsmen without secure grazing rights. "BACK

^12. Roy L. Prosterman, Jeffrey M. Riedinger, and Mary N. Temple. "Land Reform and the El Salvador Crisis" International Security, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Summer, 1981), 67.BACK

^13. Ibid., 61-62, 67.BACK

^14. Prosterman, "'IRI': A Simplified Predictive Index of Rural Instability" 347-348.BACK

^15. Prosterman, Riedinger, Temple, 68.BACK

^16. Giralt-Barraza, 13.BACK

^17. John Norton Moore, "The Secret War in Central America and the Future World Order." The American Journal of International Law, Vol. 80, No. 1 (Jan., 1986), 43-127.BACK

^18. Jerome Slater, "Dominos in Central America. Will They Fall? Does It Matter?," International Security, Vol. 12, No. 2 (Fall, 1987), 105.BACK

^19. Moore, 70.BACK

^20. J.D. Waghelstein, "El Salvador: Observations and Experiences in Counterinsurgency." Study Project published by the US Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, PA, 1985.BACK

^21. Ernest Evans, "El Salvador's Lessons for Future U.S. Interventions." World Affairs, Vol.160, No. 1 (Summer, 1997), 45.BACK

^22. These rankings are provided by freedomhouse.org. Rating of 2--Countries and territories rated 2 in political rights are less free than those rated 1. Such factors as political corruption, violence, political discrimination against minorities, and foreign or military influence on politics may be present and weaken the quality of freedom. Civil Liberties ratings of 3, 4, 5--Countries and territories that have received a rating of 3, 4, or 5 range from those that are in at least partial compliance with virtually all checklist standards to those with a combination of high or medium scores for some questions and low or very low scores on other questions. The level of oppression increases at each successive rating level, particularly in the areas of censorship, political terror, and the prevention of free association. There are also many cases in which groups opposed to the state engage in political terror that undermines other freedoms. Therefore, a poor rating for a country is not necessarily a comment on the intentions of the government, but may reflect real restrictions on liberty caused by nongovernmental actors. The combined average of these two ratings determine if a country is considered to be "Free" -- 1- 2.5, "Partially Free" -- 3 -- 5.5, and "Not Free" 5.5 -- 7. BACK

^23. Clare Ribando, US Department of Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division, Report for Congress: El Salvador: Political, Economic, and Social Conditions and Relations with the United States. January, 2005.BACK

^24. Office of the United States Trade Representative, http://www.ustr.gov, accessed May 07, 2005.BACK

^25. Department of Defense, United States Military Group, El Salvador. Talking Points memorandum, June 2005.BACK

^26. Ibid.BACK