Friday,
December 17th the Salvadoran government ratified
CAFTA.
 On
Thursday morning the final meeting of the Salvadoran
National Assembly was scheduled to begin at
9 AM. However, an hour earlier members of civil
society entered the National Assembly building
where they dramatized a “people’s
vote” on CAFTA, not surprisingly the actors
voted down the free trade agreement. Conservative
legislators used the presence of protestors
in the building as an excuse to postpone the
beginning of the plenary.
Throughout the day there were rumors that an
extra plenary session would be convened at an
undisclosed hotel mid next week to vote on CAFTA.
A vote just before Christmas, and at an undisclosed
location, would hamper the ability of the social
movement to mobilize its bases—and allow
for a vote without distractions.
At 4 PM on Thursday the plenary session, which
was to begin earlier that day, was reconvened.
While CAFTA was not on the agenda, at 3 AM ARENA
introduced the free trade agreement for discussion.
It is important to note that neither the International
Relations Committee, nor the ad-hoc committee
set up to study CAFTA, were given an opportunity
to present the results of the studies they had
been charged to facilitate on the expected impact
of CAFTA on the Salvadoran economy.
Throughout the course of the week, strong warnings
were issued by the Bishop of San Salvador, the
Human Rights Ombudsman, and the Jesuits of Central
American, amongst others, advising against a
hasty vote on CAFTA. A decision of this magnitude,
all agreed, merited dialogue and debate.
CAFTA proponents will certainly use its ratification
in El Salvador to send a message to US representatives
that the people of Central America are backing
the agreement. However, the strong public backlash
resulting from the manner in which CAFTA was
processed will call into question the assertion
that the ARENA government had the mandate of
the Salvadoran people to approve CAFTA.
Throughout the past week farmers, unionists,
doctors and factory workers have converged in
San Salvador to once again express their opposition
to a free trade agreement that they believe
will benefit few, while making survival more
precarious for the nation’s poor majority.
What’s disconcerting about today’s
events are not just that El Salvador moved CAFTA
closer to being a reality but that the democratic
process was trampled upon.
CAFTA will only become official if it is signed
by the United States signs. The best chance
for stopping CAFTA, so that in its wake we can
promote fair alternatives, is for it to be voted
down in the U.S…which leaves us with some
work to do. Please
visit SHARE’s CAFTA education and lobby
materials on the web.
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