I. Advocacy
Program
In just two years the face of El Salvador has
changed. US President George W. Bush’s
March 2002 visit and announcement of plans to
pursue a free trade agreement with Central America
(CAFTA), as well as the beginning of implementation
of the Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP), an ambitious
$10 billion infrastructure, utility and commercial
integration mega-project affecting 62 million
people living in Central America, have obliged
Salvadoran organizations to refocus their work
for economic, social and political justice by
incorporating opposition to these neoliberal
proposals into their scope of work.
SHARE’s advocacy program
promotes the rights of the Salvadoran rural
population to shape the development paths for
their country by advocating for sustainable
rural development policies and programs at the
national and local levels. SHARE accompanies
and strengthens advocacy efforts of partners
in-country, and coordinates international advocacy
initiatives in support of our Salvadoran partners.
In 2003, SHARE had three main themes
to its work which were:
• Addressing and offering
alternatives to economic policies that deepen
poverty and eliminate vital safety nets for
the poor, including privatization of healthcare,
the extension of free trade policies through
negotiations of a Central American – US
Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and infrastructure
projects such as the Plan Puebla Panamá
(PPP).
• Financial support and
technical assistance so that Salvadoran organizations
could carry out a host of educational and organizing
activities including support for demonstrations
and gatherings of civil society groups opposed
to CAFTA and strengthening advocacy proposals
that would make life in rural El Salvador more
prosperous such as having access to credit,
farm-to-market roads and better access to education
and healthcare.
A local advocacy highlight was
the continuing battle with the Salvadoran
Government to release funds and finalize
nine kilometers of construction on the
essential flood protection system in
SHARE's past target area of Tecoluca
and Jiquilisco. SHARE hosted tours to
the US to educate the US grassroots
and galvanize advocacy actions. Delegations
to El Salvador learned first hand the
effects of these policies and walked
directly with their sisters and brothers
in their struggles.
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• Building support in the United States
by educating SHARE’s regarding about free
trade initiatives and the impact that they will
have on the lives of everyday Salvadorans and
especially the rural population; creating momentum
among DC-based NGOs that represent a diverse
constituency, especially Salvadoran Americans
and traditional solidarity organizations, in
favor of fair trade over free trade and promoting
sustainable development policy alternatives
through visits, tours and meetings with US policy
makers.
No to CAFTA, Yes to
Fair Trade
In El Salvador, free trade policies are particularly
harmful to family farmers, small producers and
cooperatives that produce food for local consumption
who for a variety of reasons (including lack
of credit and basic infrastructure) cannot compete
with imported produce, especially from the highly
subsidized agribusiness sector from the United
States. In 2003, SHARE partners continued to
raise consciousness locally and to build international
alliances capable of showing strong opposition
to CAFTA in order to open space and renew negotiations
around a national rural development policy in
El Salvador that will benefit producers and
consumers alike.
Civil Society Mobilizes
to Promote Fair Trade and Sustainable Development
In late 2002 and early 2003, a new civil society
coalition formed as long-time SHARE partners
CONFRAS, CRIPDES and other organizations created
the Popular Resistance Movement 12 of October
(MPR-12). (This coalition reflects a significant
number of the grassroots base that made up the
long-time SHARE partner CIDAR.) The MPR-12 played
a key role in mobilizing Salvadoran civil society
in opposition to the privatization of public
health care and free trade policies that would
further harm family farmers and other Salvadorans
dwelling in rural areas. The MPR-12 employs
a diverse of direct action and elite advocacy
from organizing gatherings of protesters to
peacefully demonstrate in the streets to meeting
with the United States Congress and Salvadoran
Legislature.
Activities in El Salvador
in 2003 supported by SHARE included:
• Supporting
the institutional strengthening of CONFRAS
to advocate more effectively for alternatives
to free trade. In 2003, CONFRAS with
SHARE financial support put their energies into
local organizing and education around free trade
issues, leadership development and mobilizing
their base.
CONFRAS worked with their 124
member cooperatives on education about cooperative
values, operations, union organizing strategies
and economic viability. Leadership development
workshops with elected leaders deepened their
understanding of how cooperatives function economically
and socially and the importance of political
advocacy for the survival of family and cooperative
farming. Significant continuing education occurred
with the grassroots around free trade policies
and the alternative proposals for agricultural
and rural policies.
• Supporting
the peaceful direct action of Salvadoran Civil
Society. The MPR-12 promotes concrete
advocacy initiatives, as it utilizes the popular
educational tool of publicly demonstrating.
In late 2002 and throughout 2003, some of the
largest groups gathered since the end of the
civil war, to bring attention to the fact that
neoliberal policies as pursued by the government
are not advancing sustainable development. Some
of the key demonstrations throughout the year
are highlighted below.
What can we do as the rural population,
as women, as people? We can integrate
ourselves into the social movement to
denounce and fight the government’s
neoliberal policies and demand changes
in these policies that will reactivate
the agricultural sector and foster rural
development.
– National
Committee of Women’s Cooperatives
of CONFRAS
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In April, 20,000 people gathered
in San Salvador to protest the CAFTA negotiations
taking place in the city. The protest brought
together peasants, labor activists and citizens
against the privatization of healthcare in El
Salvador, many of whom had begun working together
in 2002 on related subjects, including the Central
America wide demonstrations in October to protest
Plan Puebla Panamá (see below). (It was
at this gathering on April 2, 2003 that a coalition
of NGOs, grassroots groups and unions suggested
the formation of the MPR-12.)
SHARE partners continued their
public pressure in six other marches. Members
of the MPR-12 distributed leaflets explaining
their position during each activity (26,000
leaflets per action), and held press conferences
to reach a broader population. In addition,
the MPR-12 conducted six other press conferences
throughout the year about related themes. Twenty-four
radio interviews and 540 paid radio ads helped
to inform the general population about the MPR-12´s
position.
In early December, a five-day march from the
Lower Lempa region emphasized the negative impact
free trade is already having on communities
struggling to make a living in small, fair trade
agriculture and typical Salvadoran grain crops,
as well as calling attention to the urgent need
to complete construction on the flood protection
system (see below). President Flores refused
to meet with the marchers or receive their petitions.
Police blocked the entrance to the Presidential
Palace.
Photo: MPMR-12 March
in Opposition to CAFTA
 •
Advancing policy alternatives with decision-makers
in El Salvador. In 2003, two lobbying
meetings were held with the FMLN Legislative
Assembly deputies regarding priorities for the
agricultural sector and two other meetings took
place with the FMLN Political Commission. These
meetings were of great interest to the FMLN
because they helped the FMLN build new alliances
during the legislative period prior to Leglislative
Assembly elections and build their platform
for the upcoming Presidential elections in March
2004. A key result of these meetings was
the MPR-12’s ability to successfully influence
the content of the FMLN platform. Included in
the FMLN electoral platform are key issues to
the MPR-12 such as: the need to establish credit
for the rural and agricultural sector, investments
in basic infrastructure in rural areas, restructuring
the agricultural debt and modernizing the legal
code as it relates to the agricultural sector
by establishing a Agrarian Code with a gender
focus so that women have equal protection under
the law.
In July, 106 delegates from
the MPR-12 joined groups from all over Central
America in the fourth Mesoamerican Forum to
plan efforts to resist CAFTA and PPP and to
make alternate proposals for development in
the region. El Salvador will host the fifth
Forum in 2005. The MPR-12 and the Sinti Techan
network will co-host. This is an exciting initiative
because of the collaboration between the MPR-12
that largely consists of grassroots and civil
society organizations and the Sinti Techan network
that is made up of primarily non-governmental
development organizations. These two coalitions
are working together with other organizations
and coalitions from all over Mesoamerica in
order to bolster the social movement in El Salvador
as it embraces a model that puts the interests
of everyday people over the interests of large
corporations. In 2003, the MPR-12 participated
actively in Convergence of American Peoples
(COMPA), a continent wide\coalition opposing
the free trade agreements.
• Supporting
the advocacy initiatives of our Salvadoran Partners
in the US. In the United States, SHARE
has been actively accompanying these activities
by forging solidarity ties and grassroots advocacy
as well as building relationships with US government
policy makers and the international banks. In
2003, SHARE made strides in working with a diverse
group of organizations including: labor (AFL-CIO),
student, farm, faith, environmental and solidarity
groups
SHARE focused on educating
its grassroots base (both English and Spanish
speaking) about free trade, CAFTA and its negative
impact. Information was produced and shared,
including updates researched and written in
conjunction with US-El Salvador Sister Cities.
SHARE also fostered ongoing relationships with
both religious and secular groups that participate
in the “No to CAFTA” coalition.
In addition, SHARE staff posted regular advocacy
updates to our list-serve, reaching a list of
500 people and organizations and published articles
and updates on our website.
Staff made five tours to the
US grassroots parishes, etc. and facilitated
CAFTA workshops that gave people first hand
information and a chance to ask questions and
offer suggestions to SHARE staff about the work.
Additionally, Hector Salazar from MPR-12 and
President of CONFRAS came on tour to meet with
Salvadorans in Los Angeles, sister parishes
in the Mid-Atlantic region and advocacy targets
in DC including addressing and denouncing CAFTA
before 14 key members of Congress, who subsequently
raised agricultural concerns in follow up meetings
and briefings. Presswork helped to raise awareness,
and Mr. Salazar and SHARE joined thousands of
immigrants on October 1 in the Immigrants Freedom
March in a show of cross-border solidarity.
In Washington, DC from December
9 -12, SHARE participated in a host of activities
to spread our message of fair trade during the
final round of negotiations of CAFTA. Activities
included a press conference with Representative
Salvador Arias from the Salvadoran Legislative
Assembly and the FMLN, a demonstration that
mobilized 150-200 members of the Salvadoran
and solidarity community and daily noontime
vigils in DC.
No to Infrastructure
that Destroys the Environment and Communities,
Yes to Negotiated Development Plans for the
Poor
The Plan Puebla Panamá
(PPP), is an ambitious $10 billion infrastructure,
utility and commercial integration mega-project
affecting 62 million people living in Central
America. The InterAmerican Development Bank
and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration
(CABEI) are primary supporters of the PPP. The
PPP as it is described on paper is very different
from how the PPP will actually impact the lives
of both rural and urban Salvadorans. The goal
behind the PPP is to use these “mega-projects”
such as highways, ports, hydroelectric power
and more to make Central America more accessible
to big business. Large corporations will be
the primary beneficiaries of these projects.
What the PPP fails to address
is the lack of basic infrastructure that exists
in El Salvador and in most of Central America
such as farm to market roads, access to credit
for small and medium-size farmers, potable water,
schools and health clinics.
One of the major PPP projects
in El Salvador is to create a beltway around
the capital San Salvador and a bypass so that
traffic does not have to travel through the
congested city. This is a project is estimated
at one billion US dollars and will raise the
external debt of El Salvador by 25% yet few
Salvadorans will directly benefit from this
project.
In 2003, SHARE supported the
Association of Communities Affected by the Super
Highway and Bypass (ACAP) in their struggle
to stop the construction of the west elevated
span of the highway that will pass through Soyapango,
San Salvador (San Jacinto) and San Marcos. The
ARENA government, if it wins the March 2004
elections, will begin construction on this project
in June. The highway and bypass will destroy
communities and displace families. In addition,
the construction of the highway and bypass will
create high-risk zones for environmental disasters.
The area slated for construction is in the foothills
near the San Jacinto Hill, San Salvador Volcano
and Balsam Ridge. (Inappropriate construction
on the Balsam Ridge caused the landslide that
killed more than 700 people in the January 2001
earthquake.)
Co-financing and coordination
with InterAction, the largest coalition of non-governmental
organizations in the US and a specialist on
InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) policies,
maximized SHARE’s financial support and
advocacy accompaniment. One of ACAP’s
main achievements is delaying the construction
of western span of the highway for the last
two years. Their objective is to continue their
struggles until the project is redesigned to
cause less damage to the people in the communities
and the environment.
In 2003, ACAP sought to strengthen
their position. Interviews with 512 businesses
and dwellers in affected zones indicated that
94% are against the highway. The survey process
was a first step in strengthening organizing
efforts, and ACAP fielded many requests for
further information about PPP. ACAP held more
than 20 community assemblies in August and September
to inform the population of Soyapango and San
Jacinto about the highway, and to galvanize
organized community opposition to it. On September
21 two simultaneous public protest marches came
together in the forum “YES TO LIFE, NO
TO THE SUPER HIGHWAY.” Similar organizing
in October, including assemblies and house visits
concluded in another march for ecology on October
26th, which combined with press conferences
and forums helped ACAP to broaden support for
its struggle against the highway.
No to Privatization,
Yes to Accessible Healthcare for All
In September of 2002, workers
from the Social Security health care system
(public clinics and hospitals) went on strike
in opposition to steps towards privatization
of the social security health care system in
El Salvador.
In February and March, SHARE
sponsored a US tour of Dr. Evelyn de Calderón
of SIMETRISSS who was accompanied by her colleague,
Dr. Guillermo Mata, the President of Colegio
Médico (Medical College) (and currently
the FMLN Vice Presidential candidate.) These
two physicians led the struggle to keep El Salvador's
health care system public and accessible to
people of all income levels. During their time
in the US they met with seven US Congressional
Representatives and two Senators, which resulted
in a Dear Colleague letter signed by 18 Representatives
and sent to President Flores in April urging
good faith negotiations with healthcare unions
for a fair settlement to the strike and healthcare
issues.
SHARE forged other important
solidarity ties for Doctors Calderon and Mata,
of SIMETRISSS and the Salvadoran Medical Association
who also met with representatives from the AFL-CIO,
the International Labor Rights Committee, the
Washington Office on Latin America, two sister
cities/parishes, a DC- based committee of Salvadoran
Americans and Salvadoran Baptist pastor Edgar
Palacios. A particularly poignant meeting was
held with Dr. Juan Romagoza, Salvadoran doctor
and director of a DC low-income medical clinic
and friend of SHARE since coming to the US in
1980 to seek asylum. (Dr. Romagoza is a torture
survivor who won his case in 2002 against two
retired Salvadoran generals in Florida.) Meetings
with the World Bank and USAID rounded out the
advocacy work in DC. Dr. Mata was later chosen
as the FMLN´s candidate for vice-president
in the March 2004 elections.
Photo: White March
Protest Privatization of Healthcare
In El Salvador SHARE provided
financial support for SIMETRISS, the doctor’s
union, for its organizing work, alliance building
and education campaigns for the general population.
Regional assemblies with membership, a national
tour and several widely participated, national
“white marches” (participants dressed
in white) plus the corresponding massive education
and press work helped SIMETRISS bring together
and consolidate its membership (grassroots)
at a critical time in the struggle against privatization.
These activities strengthened the union structures
while, the press and information campaigns helped
SIMETRISS disseminate message to the general
population, resulting in a notable increase
in participation in the Citizen Alliance Against
Privatization and White Marches all over the
country.
The healthcare strike began
on September 17, 2002 and after the eight white
marches, intensive lobbying in the Salvadoran
Legislative Assembly and in Washington, DC,
and a public education campaign, negotiations
took place to between the union, the Social
Security workers and government authorities
on May 28, 2003. In June 2003 the parties signed
an agreement ending the nine month-long strike
and ending attempts to privatize of the healthcare
system.
Levee Committee
Advocacy to Safeguard Homes and Jobs
The communities of Tecoluca
and Jiquilisco in the Lower Lempa Region of
El Salvador have been waiting two years for
the government to finish 9.9 kilometers of construction
on the life saving flood protection dikes and
levees. In 2003, the Levee Follow Up Committee
executed a series of advocacy actions including
a meeting with the Minister of Agriculture,
the Ministry in charge of levee construction,
to no avail. The government alleges technical
problems (a lawsuit against one of the subcontractors)
and again recommended as a solution that people
relocate if they do not want flooding to affect
their lives. In addition, the committee continued
with its efforts to maintain and repair the
parts of the levees that exist.
In 2003, the committee intensified
its community education program to inform inhabitants
about the state of the levees and government
intransigence, visiting dozens of communities
in the summer and fall. In early December, between
100 and 250 people walked for five days from
the region to San Salvador to protest and demand
the work be finished. On the fifth day more
than 15,000 others in a march accompanied them
to the Presidential Palace. However, five blocks
away, they encountered riot police who would
not allow them to pass nor present their demands
to the President.
In 2003, the committee also received technical
support from Global Village Engineers who visited
twice and continued their assessment of the
levees, providing critical information to use
for advocacy, as well as practical training
on how to give proper maintenance to the levees.
Four committee members also participated in
the July Forum of Communities Resisting Dams
in Honduras, where experiences were shared on
how to resist the plans for hydroelectric dams
in El Salvador through Puebla Panama Plan that
will provoke flooding and eventual evacuation
of poor, rural communities. The committee will
continue it advocacy and education efforts into
2004.
Photo: Levee Committee during March to San Salvador
2003 Program Report:
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