 |
|
DESTINATION EL SALVADOR
El Salvador's name still evokes images of the brutal civil
war fought throughout the 1980s – that for 12 years scorched through
the tangle of mountains and farmlands that quilt this smallest country
of Central America. The war, however, has been over for more than a decade
now, and the most turbulent aspect of El Salvador today is thankfully
just its majestic volcanic landscape.
Unlike its neighbors, El Salvador is not geared to independent travelers.
What it does offer is a whole new experience of watching a country strive
to redefine itself. Organizations from the US, Europe and Australia are
helping to rebuild El Salvador through programs devoted to education,
agricultural reform, reforestation, human rights and health care. Participating
in these developments and talking to the locals about their experiences
and hopes is one of the most productive ways to visit.
Facts at a Glance:
Full country name: Republic of El Salvador
Area: 21,040 sq km
Population: 6,122,515 (growth rate 2.3%)
Capital city: San Salvador (pop 1 million)
People: 90% mestizo (Spanish-Indian), 9% European descent,
1% Indian
Language: Spanish, some Nahua
Religion: 83% Roman Catholic, 17% Protestant
Government: Republic
President: Elias Antonio Saca Gonzalez (since June 2004)
back to top
Location, Land, and Environment:
El Salvador is a tiny country, about the size of the US state of Massachusetts,
located on the Pacific coast of Central America. It's bordered by Guatemala
to the west, Honduras to the north and east, and the Pacific Ocean to
the south. For the most part, El Salvador is lush, green and surrounded
by cloud-misted hills. More than 25 extinct volcanoes dot the country,
the largest being San Salvador, San Vicente, Santa Ana and San Miguel.
Less than 6% of the country remains forested since the land is intensively
cultivated; coffee predominates in the highlands, sugar in the lowlands
and cotton on the coastal plains. However, with the highest level of environmental
damage in the Americas, El Salvador runs the risk of losing its beauty,
especially since it's the only country in Latin America without environmental
protection laws. Many of the country's river systems suffer from pollution,
and some fear that at the current rate of destruction the country will
run out of drinking water in less than 15 years. Although industrial development
and hotel construction are major threats to the environment, the most
visible problem is trash. A circle of soaring vultures usually indicates
where a new load has been dumped by the side of the road. Other fauna
that has survived this onslaught includes quetzals, toucans, monkeys,
white-tailed deer and zillions of butterflies. There are, however, 90
endangered species in El Salvador, including marine turtles and armadillos
Elevation extremes
Lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
Highest point: Cerro El Pital 2,730 m
back to top
Weather/Climate
A wet and a dry season dominate El Salvador's climate. During the wet
season (May to October), there's generally a downpour every evening. Between
November and April the country is dry and dusty. Daytime temperatures
vary little, reaching around 30°C (86°F) in November and 34°C
(93°F) in March and April. The coastal lowlands are much hotter than
the rest of the country. San Salvador is 680m (2230ft) above sea level,
so it has a moderate climate compared to other parts of the country, but
it's still pretty sweaty.
History:
The Olmec Boulder, a stone sculpture of a giant head found near Chalchuapa
in western El Salvador, is evidence of Olmec presence in the region from
at least 2000 BC. The step-pyramid ruins at Tazumal and San Andrés
show that the Maya also lived in western El Salvador for over 1000 years.
Groups that inhabited the eastern part of the country included the Chorti,
Lenca and Pok'omame.
When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, the country was dominated
by the Pipil, descendants of Nahuatl-speaking Toltecs and Aztecs, both
Mexican tribes. The Pipil probably came to central El Salvador in the
11th century just after the Maya dynasty collapsed. Their culture was
similar to that of the Aztecs, with heavy Maya influences and a maize-based
agricultural economy that supported several cities and a complex culture
including hieroglyphic writing, astronomy and mathematics.
Spain's claim was staked by the conquistador Pedro de Alvarado, who arrived
in the area in 1525. The Spanish developed plantations of cotton, balsam
and indigo. Throughout the 1700s agriculture boomed, but a group of 14
elite European families maintained control of most of the land, which
was farmed by enslaved indigenous people or slaves imported from Africa.
Father José Matías Delgado organized a revolt against Spain
in 1811, but it was quickly suppressed. Napoleon's invasion of Spain the
following year increased the impetus for reform, and El Salvador eventually
gained independence in 1821. This did not alter the dynamics of land ownership,
an issue at the core of an unsuccessful Indian rebellion in 1833, led
by Anastasio Aquino. In 1841, following the dissolution of the Central
American Federation (formed between El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala,
Honduras and Nicaragua), El Salvador became a sovereign independent nation.
In the second half of the 19th century, synthetic dyes undermined the
indigo market, and coffee took main stage in the economy. By the 20th
century, 95% of El Salvador's income came from coffee exports, but only
2% of the population controlled that wealth. Intermittent efforts by the
poor majority to redress El Salvador's social and economic injustices
were met with severe repression. The first popular movement for change
followed on the heels of the stock-market crash of 1929 and the subsequent
plummeting of coffee prices.
In January 1932, Augustín Farabundo Martí, a founder of
the Central American Socialist party, led an uprising of peasants and
Indians. The military responded by systematically killing anyone who looked
Indian or who supported the uprising. In all, 30,000 people were killed.
Martí was arrested and executed by firing squad; his name is preserved
in the FMLN (Frente Martí Liberación Nacional).
By the 1960s El Salvador's failing economy and severe overpopulation drove
hundreds of thousands of Salvadorans to cross illegally into Honduras
seeking work. In 1969, allegations of Honduran mistreatment of Salvadoran
immigrants were raised just as a World Cup soccer match between the two
countries was being played. National rivalries and passions escalated
to a ridiculous level that resulted in El Salvador invading Honduran territory
and bombing its airports. The conflict lasted less than 100 hours, but
relations between the two neighbors were hostile for over a decade.
During the 1970s the population suffered from increased landlessness,
poverty, unemployment and overpopulation. Political parties became polarized
and fought for power largely through coups and electoral fraud. In 1972,
the military arrested and exiled the elected president and installed their
own candidate in power. Guerrilla activity increased, and the government
responded by unleashing 'death squads' who murdered, tortured or kidnapped
thousands of Salvadorans.
In 1979, a junta of military and civilians overthrew the president and
promised reforms. When these reforms were not met, opposition parties
banded together under the party name Federación Democrático
Revolucionario, of which the FMLN was the largest group. The successful
revolution in Nicaragua in 1979 encouraged many Salvadorans to believe
that armed struggle was the only way to secure reforms. When popular archbishop
Oscar Romero was assassinated saying mass in 1980, his death sparked an
armed insurrection.
FMLN guerrillas gained control of areas in the north and east of El Salvador
and blew up bridges, destroyed power lines and burned coffee plantations
in a bid to stifle the country's economy. The Reagan Administration, unnerved
by the success of Nicaragua's socialist revolution, donated huge amounts
of money to the Salvadoran government, and the military retaliated by
decimating villages, causing 300,000 citizens to flee the country. In
1982, the extreme right ARENA party took power and death squads began
targeting trade unionists and agrarian reformers.
In April 1990, United Nations-mediated negotiations began between the
government and the FMLN, and finally, on 16 January 1992, a compromise
was signed and a ceasefire took effect. The FMLN became an opposition
party, and the government agreed to various reforms, including dismantling
the death squads and replacing them with a national civil police force.
Land was to be distributed to citizens and human rights violations to
be investigated. During the course of the 12-year war, an estimated 75,000
people were killed, and the US government donated a staggering US$6 billion
to the Salvadoran government's war effort, despite knowledge of atrocities
carried out by the military. In March 1994, ARENA member Calderón
Sol was voted president, amid allegations of electoral fraud.
While some of the reforms outlined in the peace accords were implemented
(most notably the land-transfer program), many Salvadorans consider the
current situation to be no better now than it was before the civil war.
Unemployment, poverty, disgruntled ex-combatants and a proliferation of
guns in the country has led to high homicide rates - just one of the reasons
why approximately 20% of Salvadorans now live abroad. In March 1997, the
FMLN won elections in the cities of six of the 14 departments; it now
governs a greater percentage of the population than ARENA and holds a
majority in congress.
However, ARENA candidate Francisco Guillermo Flores Pérez succeeded
Presidente Calderon on 1 June 1999.
Flores' first real test came on January 13, 2001, when a major earthquake
touched off a mudslide that buried the middle-class neighborhood of Las
Colinas, a suburb of San Salvador. Scores of shacks in surrounding impoverished
shantytowns also collapsed. Flores had refused to listen to environmentalists
trying to block further development of Las Colinas' sandy, unstable hillsides;
his decision may have left 1200 dead and 250,000 homeless. To rebuild
will cost more than half of the country's yearly budget; in response to
the unforseen expenditure, FMLN officials have called on Flores to suspend
the adoption of the US dollar as the national currency. Meanwhile, the
bread-and-butter consequences of more than 3000 aftershocks - some nearly
as devastating as the original tremor - continue to ripple through the
region.
back to top
Social Statistics:
Population: 6,704,932 (July 2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 25.1 deaths/1,000 live births
(2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: 71.22 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.16 children born/woman (2005
est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.7% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 29,000 (2003
est.)
Literacy: 80.2% (age 10+ that can read and write) (2003
est.)
Culture:
El Salvador is predominantly a Roman Catholic country. During the war
the government assumed that the Catholic Church supported communism because
it sympathized with the poor, and it targeted the Church for violence.
Many fled the religion either because they feared for their lives or because
they were unhappy with the Church's affiliation with the opposition. Protestantism,
especially Evangelism, offered a welcome alternative. Other churches include
the Baptist and Pentecostal.
Spanish is the national language. Many men, mainly between the ages of
20 and 40, learned some English in the US during the war. Indigenous languages
have died out in daily use, but there is some academic interest in preserving
the Nahua language of the Pipils.
Most of the music on Salvadoran radio is standard pop fare from the US,
Mexico or other parts of Latin America, but there's a small underground
movement of canción popular (folk music), which draws its inspiration
from current events in El Salvador. Poetry is popular, and well-known
writers include Manlio Argueta and Francisco Rodriguez.
The village of La Palma has become famous for a school of art started
by Fernando Llort. His childlike, almost cartoony, images of mountain
villages, campesinos and Christ are painted in bright colors on objects
ranging from seeds to church walls. The town of Ilobasco is known for
its ceramics, while San Sebastián is recognized for its textile
arts.
El Salvadorans chow down on a standard daily fare of casamiento, a mixture
of rice and beans. Another mainstay is pupusas, a cornmeal mass stuffed
with farmer's cheese, refried beans or chicharrón (fried pork fat).
Licuados (fruit drinks), coffee and gaseosas (soft drinks) are ubiquitous.
Tic-Tack and Torito are vodka-like spirits made from sugar cane and are
not for those who cherish their stomach lining.
back to top
Food:
Most Salvadorans eat mainly beans, bread, corn, and rice. When they can
afford them, they also eat dairy products and meat. Salvadorans have bread
and coffee for breakfast and eat their main meal at midday. In the late
afternoon, many people snack on pupusas (corn-meal cakes stuffed with
chopped meat, beans, andspices). This Salvadoran specialty is sold at
many roadside stands.
Education:
A majority of El Salvador's adults can read and write. El Salvador's system
of public education is inadequate. In poor rural areas, more than half
of the children of elementary school age have no school.
Education has improved in middle- and upper-class neighborhoods of cities.
Students who complete nine years of elementary school may go to public
secondary schools for three more years and then attend a university. El
Salvador has three universities and several technical schools that prepare
young people for careers in agriculture, communications, engineering,
and various other fields.
Economic Overview:
El Salvador is a struggling Central American economy, which has been suffering
from a weak tax collection system, factory closings, the aftermaths of
Hurricane Mitch of 1998 and the devastating earthquakes of early 2001,
and weak world coffee prices. On the bright side, in recent years inflation
has fallen to single digit levels, and total exports have grown substantially.
The trade deficit has been offset by remittances (an estimated $1.6 billion
in 2000) from Salvadorans living abroad and by external aid. As of 1 January
2001, the US dollar was made legal tender alongside the colon.
back to top
Economy:
El Salvador's chief natural resource is its fertile volcanic soil. The
country also has small deposits of gold and silver. Most of its electric
power comes from hydroelectric plants on the Lempa River. Off the Pacific
Coast, fishing crews catch shrimp and lobsters.
The nation's economy depends mainly on agriculture. Cropland and pastures
cover three-fourths of the country, and over half of all workers are farmers
or ranchers. The ranchers raise beef and dairy cattle. Many of the farmers
own small farms. They cultivate beans, corn, rice, and other crops for
their families and for local markets. Other farmers work on large commercial
plantations called fincas, which raise coffee, cotton, and sugar cane.
Coffee, El Salvador's leading crop, is raised throughout the country.
But it grows best at the high elevations near Santa Ana. Cotton and sugar
cane thrive in the warm, humid lowlands along the coast.
The federal government has encouraged the creation of new industries to
lessen the nation's dependence on agriculture. Its efforts have helped
expand industrialization, but manufacturing still accounts for only a
small percentage of El Salvador's national income. The leading industries
produce chemicals, cigarettes, foods and beverages, leather goods, and
textiles.
El Salvador's prosperity depends largely on the export of coffee, cotton,
sugar, and textiles. Coffee accounts for almost half the country's export
earnings. El Salvador's chief imports include chemicals, food, machinery,
and petroleum. Germany, Guatemala, and the United States are El Salvador's
main trading partners. El Salvador belongs to the Central American Common
Market, an economic union that was formed to stimulate trade among its
members.
El Salvador has a good network of highways. The Pan American Highway spans
the country from east to west. Less than 2 per cent of all Salvadorans
own an automobile. Most people travel by bus. A majority of Salvadoran
families own one or more radios. The country has an average of about 1
television set for every 17 people. There are six daily newspapers.
Economic Statistics:
GDP: US$32.35 billion
GDP per head: US$4,900
GDP - composition by sector: Agriculture: 9.2%, Industry:
31.1%
Services: 59.7% (2004 est.)
Population below poverty line: 36.1% (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate: 6.3% with widespread underemployment
(2004 est.)
Inflation: 5.4%
Major industries: Textiles, coffee, sugar, beverages,
petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals, cotton
Major trading partners: USA, Guatemala, Mexico, Costa
Rica, Germany
back to top
Facts for the Traveler:
Currency: In January 2001, the US dollar became the legal
currency, and the colón is gradually being phased out. It's best
to bring US dollars, as it's the only currency that you can be sure of
exchanging. Few banks change travelers' checks readily and easily, and
the policy seems to differ not only between banks but between branches
as well. Be sure to change any leftover colónes before you leave
El Salvador.
A value-added tax (IVA) of 10% is applied to all goods and services in
El Salvador; make sure you know whether it's already included in the listed
price.
Major Cities and Attractions
San Salvador:
El Salvador's capital and largest city lies in a valley at the foot of
the large San Salvador volcano. It's not the prettiest place in the world
since the valley is a pollution trap, which perfectly captures the city's
horrendous traffic effluvium. The rural migration and the declining economy
during the war expanded the urban poor, and unemployment is still around
50%. Shantytowns abound and the streets are lined with people selling
everything from bruised fruit to Velcro gun holsters just to get by.
San Salvador was founded at its present site in 1546 and has been the
capital of El Salvador since 1839. Despite its long history, there are
no old buildings to see since the accident-prone city has been destroyed
many times - by earthquakes in 1854 and 1873, by the most recent eruption
of the San Salvador volcano in 1917 and by floods in 1934. An earthquake
in 1986 caused considerable damage, and reconstruction is still going
on.
The city's central landmark is the domed Catedral Metropolitana, where
Archbishop Oscar Romero is buried. The cathedral faces onto the principal
plaza, the Plaza Barrios. Nearby, the red-velvet opulence of the Teatro
Nacional dates from 1917. Its sensuous ceiling mural is continued into
the nearby Teatro Cafe. The city has two markets, the Mercado Ex-Cuartel
for handicrafts, hand-woven textiles and ceramics, and the Mercado Central
for daily needs. The Museo Nacional Davíd J Guzmán holds
most of the country's notable archaeological finds, and the Jardín
Botánico La Laguna is an attractive garden built on what was once
a swamp at the bottom of a volcanic crater.
Accommodation is concentrated near the eastern and western bus stations,
but these neighborhoods are not safe, especially at night. You can find
better service and safety in a few places near the center and a whole
slew of guesthouses on the city's western edge. The Zona Rosa is the ritziest
and most exclusive restaurant and nightlife district.
back to top
La Libertad:
This is a 'been there done that' surfer destination with some of the best
waves rolled out by the Pacific Ocean. If you don't surf, there's not
much else to do in this small seaside town full of dried, diced and just
plain dead fish - all emitting a pungent, salty smell. The closest beach
to the capital, La Libertad swells with city folk on weekends. If the
crowds get to be too much, head to one of the many beaches along La Costa
del Bálsamo, 75km (46mi) of surfable coast stretching west from
La Libertad to Acajutla. La Libertad is 37km (23mi) south of San Salvador,
about an hour-long trip by bus.
Montecristo Cloud Forest:
The area where the borders of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala converge
receives 200cm (80in) of annual precipitation, experiences 100% humidity
and rises to an elevation of 2400m (7900ft) - ideal conditions for a cloud
forest. In the Montecristo cloud forest, oak and laurel trees grow to
30m (98ft), and their leaves form a canopy impenetrable to sunlight. Ferns,
orchids, mushrooms and mosses coat the forest floor, and the local wildlife
includes rare and protected spider monkeys, two-fingered anteaters, pumas,
agoutis, toucans and striped owls. The cloud forest is in the Parque Nacional
Montecristo-El Trifinio, northeast of sleepy Metapán and a four
hour bus ride due north of San Salvador.
back to top
Ruinas de Tazumal:
The Maya ruins of Tazumal, considered the most important and best preserved
in El Salvador, are in the town of Chalchuapa. In the Quiché language
the name Tazumal means 'pyramid where the victims were burned.' The excavated
ruins on display here are only one part of a zone covering 10 sq km (4
sq mi), much of it buried under the town. Archaeologists estimate that
the first settlements in the area were around 5000 BC. The excavated structures
date from a period spanning over 1000 years. The artifacts found at Tazumal
provide evidence of ancient and active trade between Tazumal and places
as far away as Panama and Mexico. Chalchuapa is 76km (47mi) northwest
of San Salvador, about a two hour ride by bus, usually via the town of
Santa Ana.
Further Reading:
El Salvador: The Face of Revolution, by Robert Armstrong &
Janet Shenk, is a very readable history of the country, focusing on the
roots and reasons behind the recent civil war.
I Was Never Alone: A Prison Diary from El Salvador is a first-person
account of life in a women's prison during the war, written by Nidia Diaz,
a guerrilla commander shot and captured by the military in 1985.
Joan Didion's Salvador is a laconic, piercing portrait of El
Salvador in 1982, which avoids breast-beating its way to the moral high
ground by using well-honed skills of allusion and irony.
Ryszard Kapuscinski's The Soccer War is a brilliant report of
the 1969 conflict between El Salvador and Honduras which captures both
the farce and the atrocious historical causes of the conflict. The article
is included in the anthology of Best of Granta Reportage.
So Far From God by Patrick Marnham is an unflinching and lucid
appraisal of Central America, its Spanish legacy, its current problems
and its troubled relationship with the US.
PJ O'Rourke is more blunt and much more funny in Holidays in Hell.
Exiled novelist and poet Manlio Argueta is one of El Salvador's finest
writers. His banned novel One Day of Life is a down-to-earth
portrayal of peasant life in the country.
One of the country's most influential poets is Roque Dalton, whose works
include Poemas Clandestinas.
Cuentos de Barro by Salvador Salazar Arrué (writing under
the pen name of Salarué) marks the beginning of the modern Central
American short-story genre.
Information adapted from the Lonely Planet
website, the Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia, Human Development Report
1999 & the World Factbook.
(updated 08/05)
back to
top
|
