Koordinaten: 13 ° 50'N 88 ° 55'W / 13.833 ° N 88.917 ° W
Republik El Salvador República de El Salvador (Spanisch) | |||
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Motto: " src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Coat_of_arms_of_El_Salvador.svg/85px-Coat_of_arms_of_El_Salvador.svg.png" decoding="async" width="85" height="81" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Coat_of_arms_of_El_Salvador.svg/128px-Coat_of_arms_of_El_Salvador.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Coat_of_arms_of_El_Salvador.svg/170px-Coat_of_arms_of_El_Salvador.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="600" data-file-height="571"/> | |||
"Dios, Unión, Libertad" (Spanisch) Englisch: "Gott, Einheit, Freiheit" | |||
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| Hauptstadt " src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/El_Salvador_-_Location_Map_%282013%29_-_SLV_-_UNOCHA.svg/250px-El_Salvador_-_Location_Map_%282013%29_-_SLV_-_UNOCHA.svg.png" decoding="async" width="250" height="250" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/El_Salvador_-_Location_Map_%282013%29_-_SLV_-_UNOCHA.svg/375px-El_Salvador_-_Location_Map_%282013%29_-_SLV_-_UNOCHA.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/El_Salvador_-_Location_Map_%282013%29_-_SLV_-_UNOCHA.svg/500px-El_Salvador_-_Location_Map_%282013%29_-_SLV_-_UNOCHA.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="250" data-file-height="250"/> | |||
und größte Stadt | San Salvador 13 ° 40′N 89 ° 10′W / 13.667 ° N 89.167 ° W | ||
| Offizielle Sprachen | Spanisch | ||
| Ethnische Gruppen | |||
| Demonym (e) | Salvadoranisch Guanaco (informell) | ||
| Regierung | Einheitliche Präsidentschaft der Verfassungsrepublik | ||
| Salvador Sánchez Cerén | |||
| Óscar Ortiz | |||
| Legislative | Legislative Assembly | ||
| Unabhängigkeit | |||
| 15. September 1821 | |||
| 12. Juni 1824 | |||
• Wird zu einer unabhängigen Nation [19589024] 18. Februar 1841 | |||
| Fläche | |||
• Gesamt | 21.041 km 2 (8.124 Quadratmeilen) (148.) | ||
• Wasser (%) | 1.5 | ||
| Bevölkerung | |||
• 2016 Schätzung | 6,344,722 [3] (99.) | ||
• Dichte | 303,1 / km 2 (785,0 / Quadratmeilen) (47.) | ||
| BIP (PPP) ] | Schätzung von 2015 | ||
• Insgesamt | 52,666 Mrd. US-Dollar [4] | ||
• Pro Kopf | 8.668 [1945906050] [1945906050] [1945906050] [19456555] ] (nominal) | Schätzung von 2015 | | |
• Insgesamt | 28,986 Milliarden US-Dollar [4] | ||
• Pro Kopf | 4776.000 US-Dollar [194590606] [194590606] | ||
| Gini (2013) | 43.5 [5] medium | ||
| HDI (2017) | mittel · 121st | ||
| Währung | US-Dollar a (USD) | ||
| Zeitzone | UTC-6 (CST.) ) | ||
| Fahrerseite | rechts | ||
| Vorwahlcode | +503 b | ||
| ISO 3166-Code | SV | ||
| Internet TLD | .sv | .sv | Der US-Dollar ist die verwendete Währung. Finanzinformationen können in US-Dollar und in salvadorianischem Colón ausgedrückt werden, der Colón ist jedoch nicht in Umlauf. [7] |
El Salvador ( (
El Salvador war jahrhundertelang von mehreren mesoamerikanischen Nationen, insbesondere den Cuzcatlecs, sowie den Lenca und Maya bewohnt. Im frühen 16. Jahrhundert eroberte das spanische Reich das Gebiet und baute es in den von Mexiko-Stadt aus regierten Vizekönigreich von Neuspanien ein. Der Vizekönigreich von Mexiko hatte jedoch keinen oder nur einen geringen Einfluss auf die täglichen Angelegenheiten des zentralamerikanischen Isthmus, der 1524 kolonialisiert werden sollte. 1609 wurde das Gebiet zum Generalkapitän von Guatemala, zu dem El Salvador bis zu seiner Unabhängigkeit von Spanien gehörte , das 1821 als Teil des Ersten Mexikanischen Reiches stattfand und 1823 als Teil der Bundesrepublik Zentralamerika weiter abgetrennt wurde. Als sich die Republik 1841 löste, wurde El Salvador eine souveräne Nation und bildete dann einen Kurzschluss lebte die Vereinigung mit Honduras und Nicaragua als Große Republik Mittelamerikas, die von 1895 bis 1898 dauerte. [8][9][10]
Von Ende des 19. bis Mitte des 20. Jahrhunderts erlebte El Salvador eine chronische politische und wirtschaftliche Instabilität, die durch Putsche, Revolten, und eine Reihe von autoritären Herrschern. Anhaltende sozioökonomische Ungleichheit und zivile Unruhen kulminierten im verheerenden salvadorianischen Bürgerkrieg (1979–1992), der zwischen der vom Militär geführten Regierung und einer Koalition linker Guerillagruppen geführt wurde. Der Konflikt endete mit den Friedensabkommen von Chapultepec. Mit dieser Verhandlungslösung wurde eine Mehrparteien-Verfassungsrepublik gegründet, die bis heute bestehen bleibt.
Die Wirtschaft von El Salvador war historisch geprägt von der Landwirtschaft, angefangen mit der Indigopflanze ( bis auf Spanisch), der wichtigsten Ernte während der Kolonialzeit, [11][12] und danach Kaffee Das frühe 20. Jahrhundert machte 90 Prozent der Exporterlöse aus. [13][14] El Salvador hat seitdem seine Abhängigkeit vom Kaffee reduziert und die Diversifizierung der Wirtschaft durch die Erschließung von Handels- und Finanzverbindungen sowie die Ausweitung des verarbeitenden Gewerbes eingeleitet. [15] Der Colón, der Die offizielle Währung von El Salvador seit 1892 wurde 2001 durch den US-Dollar ersetzt.
Seit 2010 [update] liegt El Salvador hinsichtlich des Human Development Index an 12. Stelle und an vierter Stelle in Zentralamerika (hinter Panama, Costa Rica und Belize), was teilweise auf die fortschreitende rasche Industrialisierung zurückzuführen ist. [16] ] Das Land hat jedoch weiterhin mit hohen Raten von Armut, Ungleichheit und Kriminalität zu kämpfen.
Etymologie
Conquistador Pedro de Alvarado benannte die neue Provinz für Jesus Christus - El Salvador ("Der Erlöser"). Der vollständige Name war " Provincia de Nuestro Señor Jesus Cristo, El Salvador Del Mundo " ("Provinz unseres Herrn Jesus Christus, des Erlösers der Welt"), die später als " El" abgekürzt wurde Salvador "(Der Erlöser). [17]
Geschichte
Prähistorisch
Tomayate ist eine paläontologische Fundstätte am Ufer des Flusses von der gleiche Name in der Gemeinde Apopa. Der Standort hat reichhaltige salvadorianische Megafauna-Fossilien hervorgebracht, die zur Pleistozän-Epoche gehören. Die paläontologische Stätte wurde im Jahr 2000 zufällig entdeckt. Im folgenden Jahr wurden bei einer Ausgrabung des Naturkundemuseums von El Salvador nicht nur einige Überreste von Cuvieronius, sondern auch einige andere Wirbeltierarten gefunden. Im Tomayate-Gelände wurden mindestens 19 Arten von Wirbeltieren geborgen, darunter Riesenschildkröten, Megatherium, Glyptodon, Toxodon, ausgestorbene Pferde, Paläo-Lamas und vor allem eine große Anzahl von Skelettüberresten der Proboscis-Gattung Cuvieronius. Die Tomayate-Stätte zeichnet sich durch die meisten zentralamerikanischen Pleistozän-Lagerstätten aus. Sie ist älter und viel reicher, was wertvolle Informationen über den Great American Interchange liefert, in dem die mittelamerikanische Landenge Landbridge die Titelrolle gespielt hat. Gleichzeitig gilt sie als reichste paläontologische Stätte für Wirbeltiere in Zentralamerika und als eine der größten Ansammlungen von Proboscideans in Amerika.
Präkolumbianer
Eine hoch entwickelte Zivilisation in El Salvador geht auf ihre Besiedlung durch das indigene Volk der Lenca zurück; Ihre war die erste und älteste indigene Zivilisation, die sich in El Salvador niederließ. Den Lenca folgten die Olmeken, die schließlich auch verschwanden und ihre monumentale Architektur in Form der Pyramiden hinterließen, die im westlichen El Salvador noch vorhanden sind. Die Maya kamen und siedelten sich an Stelle der Olmeken an, aber ihre Zahl wurde stark verringert, als der Ausbruch des Ilopango-Supervulkans einen massiven Maya-Exodus aus dem heutigen El Salvador verursachte. [18]
Jahrhunderte später Sie wurden von den Pipil-Leuten, Nahua-sprechenden Gruppen [18] ersetzt, die in den Jahrhunderten vor der europäischen Eroberung aus Mexiko auswanderten und die zentralen und westlichen Regionen besetzten. Die Pipil waren die letzten Ureinwohner, die in El Salvador ankamen. [19] Sie nannten ihr Territorium Kuskatan ein Wort von Pipil [20] was bedeutet, der Ort der kostbaren Juwelen der zu Klassikern zurückgebildet wurde Nahuatl Cōzcatlān und Hispanicized als Cuzcatlán . [21][22] Die Einwohner von El Salvador werden heute als Salvadorianer bezeichnet, während der Begriff Cuzcatleco üblicherweise zur Identifikation verwendet wird jemand aus Salvadorianischem Erbe.
In präkolumbianischen Zeiten war das Land auch von verschiedenen anderen indigenen Völkern bewohnt, einschließlich der Lenca, einer chilanga-lencanischen Gruppe [23] die sich im östlichen Hochland ansiedelte. [24] Cuzcatlan war bis dahin die größte Domäne Spanische Eroberung. Seit El Salvador am östlichen Rand der Maya-Zivilisation residierte, sind die Ursprünge vieler Ruinen von El Salvador umstritten. Es besteht jedoch weitgehend Einigkeit darüber, dass Mayas wahrscheinlich die Gebiete um den Lago de Guija und Cihuatán besetzt haben. Andere Ruinen wie Tazumal, Joya de Cerén und San Andrés wurden möglicherweise von Pipil oder Maya oder möglicherweise von beiden gebaut. [25]
Europäischer Kontakt (1522)
Bis 1521 war die indigene Bevölkerung des mesoamerikanischen Gebiets drastisch gewesen reduziert durch die Pockenepidemie, die sich im gesamten Gebiet ausbreitete, obwohl sie in Cuzcatlán noch keine Pandemie erreicht hatte. [26][27][28] Der erste bekannte Besuch der Spanier im heutigen salvadorianischen Territorium wurde vom spanischen Admiral Andrés Niño, dem Chef, durchgeführt eine spanische Expedition nach Mittelamerika. Er landete am 31. Mai 1522 auf der Insel Meanguera im Golf von Fonseca, nannte es Petronila [29] und entdeckte dann die Jiquilisco Bay an der Mündung des Lempa-Flusses. Die ersten Ureinwohner, die Kontakt zu den Spaniern hatten, waren die Lenca im Osten El Salvadors.
Eroberung von Cuzcatlán (1524–1525)
Im Jahr 1524 durchquerten spanische Eroberer, die von Pedro de Alvarado und seinem Bruder Gonzalo angeführt wurden, 1524 den Rio Paz (Peace River) aus der Gegenwart Republik Guatemala in die heutige Republik El Salvador. Die Spanier waren enttäuscht, als sie entdeckten, dass die Ureinwohner von Pipil kein Gold oder Juwelen hatten, wie sie sie in Guatemala oder Mexiko gefunden hatten. Sie erkannten jedoch den Reichtum des vulkanischen Bodens des Landes an.
Pedro de Alvarado führte im Juni 1524 den ersten Einfall der spanischen Streitkräfte aus, um ihre Herrschaft auf die Nation von Cuzcatlan (El Salvador) auszudehnen. [30]
Als er an den Grenzen des Cuzcatlan-Königreichs ankam, sah er, dass Zivilisten gewesen waren evakuiert Cuzcatlec-Krieger zogen in die Küstenstadt Acajutla und warteten auf Alvarado und seine Truppen. Alvarado sprach zuversichtlich, dass das Ergebnis ähnlich sein würde wie in Mexiko und Guatemala, wo die Leute glaubten, die Spanier seien Götter. Er dachte, er würde diese neue indigene Kraft leicht besiegen, da seine mexikanischen Verbündeten und der Pipil von Cuzcatlan eine ähnliche Sprache sprachen.
Die indigenen Völker von El Salvador sahen die Spanier nicht als Götter, sondern als fremde Eindringlinge. Alvarado sah, dass die Cuzcatan-Truppe die spanischen Soldaten und die indianischen Verbündeten in Mexiko unterlegen war. Die Spanier zogen sich zurück und die Cuzcatlec-Armee griff an und rannte mit Kriegsgesängen und Pfeilschießen hinter ihnen her. Alvarado hatte keine andere Wahl, als zu kämpfen, um zu überleben. [ Zitat erforderlich ]
Alvarado beschrieb die Cuzcatlec-Soldaten als sehr detailliert, als hätten sie Schilde aus farbenfrohen exotischen Federn, die wie eine Weste aussehen Rüstung aus drei Zoll Baumwolle, die Pfeile nicht durchdringen konnten, und große Speere. Beide Armeen erlitten viele Verluste, ein verwundeter Alvarado zog sich zurück und verlor viele seiner Männer, besonders unter den mexikanischen Indianer-Hilfstruppen. Nachdem sich seine Armee neu formiert hatte, beschloss Alvarado, in die Hauptstadt von Cuzcatlan zu gehen, und stand erneut dem bewaffneten Cuzcatlec gegenüber. Verwundet, nicht in der Lage zu kämpfen und sich in den Klippen zu verstecken, schickte Alvarado seine spanischen Männer auf ihre Pferde, um sich dem Cuzcatlec zu nähern, um zu sehen, ob sie die Pferde fürchten würden, aber sie zogen sich nicht zurück, erinnert sich Alvarado in seinen Briefen an Hernan Cortez. Zitat erforderlich ]
Der Cuzcatlec griff erneut an und stahl bei dieser Gelegenheit spanische Waffen. Alvarado zog sich zurück und sandte mexikanische indische Boten, um zu verlangen, dass die Cuzcatlec-Krieger die gestohlenen Waffen zurückgeben und sich dem spanischen König ergeben. Der Cuzcatlec antwortete mit der berühmten Antwort: "Wenn Sie Ihre Waffen wollen, holen Sie sie". Als die Tage vergingen, schickte Alvarado aus Angst vor einem Hinterhalt weitere mexikanische indische Boten, um zu verhandeln, aber diese Boten kamen nie zurück und wurden vermutlich hingerichtet.
Die spanischen Bemühungen wurden von den Ureinwohnern, einschließlich der Pipil und ihrer Maya-sprechenden Nachbarn, entschieden abgelehnt. Sie besiegten die Spanier und das, was von ihren mexikanischen Verbündeten aus Tlaxcala übrig geblieben war, und zwangen sie, sich nach Guatemala zurückzuziehen. Nachdem er verwundet worden war, gab Alvarado den Krieg auf und bestellte seinen Bruder Gonzalo de Alvarado, um die Aufgabe fortzusetzen. Zwei weitere Expeditionen (die erste im Jahr 1525, gefolgt von einer kleineren Gruppe im Jahre 1528) brachten die Pipil unter spanische Kontrolle, da auch die Pipil durch eine regionale Pockenepidemie geschwächt wurden. Im Jahr 1525 wurde die Eroberung von Cuzcatlán abgeschlossen und die Stadt San Salvador gegründet. Die Spanier stießen auf starken Widerstand der Pipil und konnten das östliche El Salvador, das Gebiet der Lencas, nicht erreichen.
1526 gründeten die Spanier die Garnisonsstadt San Miguel, angeführt von einem anderen Entdecker und Eroberer, Luis de Moscoso Alvarado, dem Neffen von Pedro Alvarado. Die mündliche Geschichte besagt, dass eine Maya-Lenca-Kronprinzessin, Antu Silan Ulap I., den Widerstand gegen die Konquistadoren organisierte. [31] Das Königreich Lenca wurde durch die Invasion von De Moscoso alarmiert, und Antu Silan reiste von Dorf zu Dorf und vereinte alle Lenca-Städte im heutigen El Salvador und Honduras gegen die Spanier. Durch Überraschungsangriffe und überwältigende Zahlen gelang es ihnen, die Spanier aus San Miguel zu vertreiben und die Garnison zu zerstören.
Die Lencas hinderten die Spanier zehn Jahre lang am Bau einer dauerhaften Siedlung. Dann kehrten die Spanier mit weiteren Soldaten zurück, darunter etwa 2.000 Zwangsrekrutierte aus indigenen Gemeinschaften in Guatemala. Sie verfolgten die Lenca-Führer weiter in die Berge von Intibucá.
Antu Silan Ulap übergab schließlich die Kontrolle über den Lenca-Widerstand an Lempira (auch Empira genannt). Lempira war unter den indigenen Führern insofern bemerkenswert, als er die Spanier verspottete, indem er ihre Kleidung trug, nachdem er sie gefangen genommen hatte und ihre Waffen im Kampf eingesetzt hatten. Lempira kämpfte noch sechs Jahre lang in El Salvador und Honduras um Tausende von Lenca-Truppen, bis er im Kampf getötet wurde. Die restlichen Lenca-Truppen zogen sich in die Hügel zurück. Die Spanier konnten dann 1537 ihre Garnisonsstadt San Miguel wieder aufbauen.
Spanische Herrschaft (1525–1821)
In der Kolonialzeit war El Salvador dabei des Generalkapitäns von Guatemala, auch bekannt als Königreich Guatemala (spanisch: Reino de Guatemala ), 1609 als Verwaltungsabteilung von Neu-Spanien gegründet. Das salvadorianische Gebiet wurde vom Bürgermeister von Sonsonate verwaltet. San Salvador wurde 1786 als Intendancia gegründet.
Gegen Ende des Jahres 1811 veranlasste eine Kombination aus inneren und äußeren Faktoren die zentralamerikanischen Eliten dazu, die Unabhängigkeit von der spanischen Krone zu versuchen. Die wichtigsten internen Faktoren waren der Wunsch der lokalen Eliten, die Angelegenheiten des Landes ohne Einbeziehung der spanischen Behörden zu kontrollieren, und das langjährige kreolische Streben nach Unabhängigkeit. Die wichtigsten äußeren Faktoren, die die Unabhängigkeitsbewegung motivierten, waren der Erfolg der französischen und der amerikanischen Revolution im 18. Jahrhundert und die Schwächung der militärischen Macht der spanischen Krone infolge der napoleonischen Kriege, wodurch die Kolonien nicht effektiv kontrolliert werden konnten.
Im November 1811 läutete der salvadorianische Priester José Matías Delgado die Glocken von Iglesia La Merced in San Salvador, forderte Aufstand und rief die Unabhängigkeitsbewegung von 1811 ins Leben. Dieser Aufstand wurde unterdrückt und viele seiner Anführer wurden verhaftet und zu Haftstrafen verurteilt. Ein weiterer Aufstand wurde 1814 gestartet, und auch dieser Aufstand wurde unterdrückt.
Unabhängigkeit (1821)
Im Jahr 1821 kapitulierten und unterzeichneten spanische Behörden das Unabhängigkeitsgesetz von Zentralamerika, das die gesamte Captaincy von Guatemala (bestehend aus den derzeitigen Territorien Guatemalas, El Salvador) Honduras, Nicaragua und Costa Rica sowie der mexikanische Bundesstaat Chiapas) von der spanischen Herrschaft und erklärte seine Unabhängigkeit. Im Jahr 1821 schloss sich El Salvador mit Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras und Nicaragua in einer Union namens Bundesrepublik Mittelamerika an.
Anfang 1822 stimmten die in Guatemala City zusammentretenden Behörden der neuen unabhängigen zentralamerikanischen Provinzen für den Beitritt zum neu gegründeten Ersten Mexikanischen Reich unter Agustín de Iturbide. El Salvador widersetzte sich und bestand auf der Autonomie der mittelamerikanischen Länder. Eine mexikanische Militärabteilung marschierte nach San Salvador und unterdrückte den Dissens, aber mit dem Sturz von Iturbide am 19. März 1823 zog sich die Armee nach Mexiko zurück. Kurz darauf widerrufen die Behörden der Provinzen die Zustimmung zum Beitritt zu Mexiko und beschlossen, stattdessen eine föderale Vereinigung der fünf verbleibenden Provinzen zu bilden. (Chiapas ist zu diesem Zeitpunkt dauerhaft mit Mexiko verbunden.)
Als sich die Bundesrepublik Zentralamerika 1841 auflöste, behielt El Salvador seine eigene Regierung bei, bis sie sich 1896 mit Honduras und Nicaragua verband und die Große Republik Zentralamerika bildete, die 1898 aufgelöst wurde.
Nach der Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts basierte die Wirtschaft auf dem Kaffeeanbau. Als der Weltmarkt für Indigo nachließ, wuchs oder litt die Wirtschaft, als der Weltkaffeepreis schwankte. Die enormen Gewinne, die der Kaffee als Monokulturexport erwirtschaftete, gaben den Anstoß für die Konzentration von Land in die Hände einer Oligarchie von wenigen Familien. [32]
In der letzten Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts Jahrhundert, eine Reihe von Präsidenten aus den Reihen der salvadorianischen Oligarchie, die sowohl konservativ als auch liberal waren, stimmte im Allgemeinen der Förderung des Kaffees als vorherrschender Geldernte, der Entwicklung der Infrastruktur (Eisenbahn und Hafenanlagen) vor allem zur Unterstützung des Kaffeehandels zu die Beseitigung gemeinschaftlicher Grundstücke zur Erleichterung der weiteren Kaffeeproduktion, die Verabschiedung von Anti-Vagrancy-Gesetzen, um sicherzustellen, dass vertriebene Campesinos und andere ländliche Bewohner ausreichend Arbeit für die Kaffeefincas (Plantagen) zur Verfügung stellten, und die Unterdrückung ländlicher Unzufriedenheit. Im Jahr 1912 wurde die Nationalgarde als ländliche Polizei geschaffen.
20. Jahrhundert
Im Jahr 1898 erlangte General Tomas Regalado mit Gewalt die Macht. Er setzte Rafael Antonio Gutiérrez ab und regierte bis 1903 als Präsident. Nachdem er im Amt war, belebte er die Praxis der Präsidenten, die ihre Nachfolger ernannten. Nach seiner Amtszeit blieb er in der Armee von El Salvador aktiv und wurde am 11. Juli 1906 in El Jicaro während eines Krieges gegen Guatemala getötet. Bis 1913 war El Salvador politisch stabil, mit Unzufriedenheit der Bevölkerung. Als Präsident Dr. Manuel Enrique Araujo im Jahr 1913 getötet wurde, wurden viele Hypothesen aus politischen Gründen vorgebracht.
Auf Araujos Regierung folgte die Melendez-Quinonez-Dynastie, die von 1913 bis 1927 dauerte. Pio Romero Bosque, Ex-Minister der Regierung und ein vertrauenswürdiger Mitarbeiter der Dynastie, folgte Präsident Jorge Meléndez und kündigte 1930 freie Wahlen an, bei denen Arturo Araujo am 1. März 1931 an die Macht kam, was als erste frei umkämpfte Wahl des Landes galt. Seine Regierung dauerte nur neun Monate, bevor sie von Militärsoldaten gestürzt wurde, die seine Arbeiterpartei beschuldigten, sie hätten keine politischen und staatlichen Erfahrungen und würden ihre Regierungsbehörden ineffizient nutzen. Präsident Araujo war mit der allgemeinen Unzufriedenheit der Bevölkerung konfrontiert, da die Bevölkerung mit wirtschaftlichen Reformen und der Umverteilung von Land gerechnet hatte. In der ersten Woche seiner Verwaltung gab es Demonstrationen vor dem Nationalpalast. Sein Vizepräsident und Kriegsminister war General Maximiliano Hernández Martínez.
Im Dezember 1931 begann im ersten Regiment der Infanterie gegen den Nationalpalast in der Innenstadt von San Salvador ein Staatsstreich, der von jungen Offizieren organisiert und von General Martínez angeführt wurde. Nur das Erste Kavallerieregiment und die Nationalpolizei verteidigten die Präsidentschaft (die Nationalpolizei war auf ihrer Gehaltsliste), aber später in dieser Nacht, nach stundenlangen Kämpfen, kapitulierten die schlecht unterlegenen Verteidiger den Rebellen.
Die aus Offizieren bestehende Direktion versteckte sich hinter einer Schattenfigur, [33] einem reichen antikommunistischen Bankier namens Rodolfo Duke, und installierte später den leidenschaftlichen Faschisten General Martínez als Präsidenten. Der Aufstand war wahrscheinlich auf die Unzufriedenheit der Armee zurückzuführen, die seit einigen Monaten nicht mehr von Präsident Araujo bezahlt wurde. Araujo verließ den Nationalpalast und versuchte erfolglos, Truppen zu organisieren, um den Aufstand zu besiegen.
Der US-amerikanische Minister in El Salvador traf mit der Direktion zusammen und anerkannte später die Regierung von Martínez, die sich auf Präsidentschaftswahlen einigte. Er trat sechs Monate vor seiner Wiederwahl zurück und gewann die Präsidentschaft als einziger Kandidat zurück. Er regierte von 1935 bis 1939, dann von 1939 bis 1943. Er begann seine vierte Amtszeit im Jahr 1944, trat aber im Mai nach einem Generalstreik zurück. Martínez hatte gesagt, er werde die Verfassung respektieren, wonach er nicht wiedergewählt werden könne, weigerte sich jedoch, sein Versprechen zu halten.
Ab Dezember 1931, dem Jahr des Putsches, der Martínez an die Macht brachte, kam es zu einer brutalen Unterdrückung des ländlichen Widerstands. Das bemerkenswerteste Ereignis war der Bauernaufstand in Salvador im Februar 1932, der ursprünglich von Farabundo Martí und Abel Cuenca sowie den Universitätsstudenten Alfonso Luna und Mario Zapata angeführt wurde. Diese Anführer wurden jedoch vor dem geplanten Aufstand gefangengenommen. Nur Cuenca überlebte; Die anderen Aufständischen wurden von der Regierung getötet. Nach der Festnahme der Führer der Bewegung brach der Aufstand in unorganisierter und mob-kontrollierter Weise aus, was zu Regierungsrepression führte, die später als La Matanza (Das Massaker) bezeichnet wurde, weil Zehntausende Bauern im darauffolgenden Chaos auf der Insel starben Aufträge von Präsident Martinez.
In dem instabilen politischen Klima der vergangenen Jahre half der Sozialaktivist und Revolutionsführer Farabundo Martí mit, die Kommunistische Partei Mittelamerikas zu gründen, und führte eine kommunistische Alternative zum Roten Kreuz mit dem Namen International Red Aid (Internationale Rote Hilfe) an Vertreter. Ihr Ziel war es, armen und unterprivilegierten Salvadorianern durch den Einsatz marxistisch-leninistischer Ideologie zu helfen (Stalinismus stark abzulehnen). Im Dezember 1930, auf dem Höhepunkt der wirtschaftlichen und sozialen Depression des Landes, wurde Martí erneut wegen seiner Beliebtheit unter den Armen der Nation und Gerüchten über seine bevorstehende Nominierung für den Präsidenten im folgenden Jahr verbannt. Nachdem Arturo Araujo 1931 zum Präsidenten gewählt worden war, kehrte Martí nach El Salvador zurück und begann zusammen mit Alfonso Luna und Mario Zapata die Bewegung, die später vom Militär abgeschnitten wurde.
Sie haben zu einem Guerilla-Aufstand indigener Bauern beigetragen. Die Regierung reagierte, indem sie bei einem "friedlichen Treffen" im Jahr 1932 über 30.000 Menschen tötete. Dies wurde als La Matanza (The Slaughter) bekannt. Der Bauernaufstand gegen Martínez wurde zehn Tage nach seinem Beginn vom salvadorianischen Militär niedergeschlagen. Die kommunistisch angeführte Rebellion, die durch den Zusammenbruch der Kaffeepreise angeheizt wurde, hatte anfänglich einige Erfolge, wurde jedoch bald in einem Blutbad ertränkt. Präsident Martínez, der selbst erst Wochen zuvor eine gewählte Regierung gestürzt hatte, ordnete den geschlagenen Martí-Schuss nach einer flüchtigen Anhörung an.
Historisch hat die hohe Bevölkerungsdichte der Salvadorianer zu Spannungen mit dem benachbarten Honduras beigetragen, als die landarmen Salvadorianer in das weniger dicht besiedelte Honduras auswanderten und sich als Besetzer auf ungenutzten oder ungenutzten Land etablierten. Dieses Phänomen war eine der Hauptursachen des Fußballkrieges zwischen den beiden Ländern von 1969. [34] Bis zu 130.000 Salvadorianer wurden aus Honduras vertrieben oder flohen. [35]
The Christian Democratic Party (PDC) ) und die National Conciliation Party (PCN) waren von 1960 bis 2011 in der salvadorianischen Politik aktiv, als sie vom Obersten Gerichtshof aufgelöst wurden, weil sie bei den Präsidentschaftswahlen 2004 nicht genügend Stimmen gewonnen hatten. [36] Beide Parteien haben sich seitdem neu konstituiert. Sie haben gemeinsame Ideale, aber eines repräsentiert die Mittelschicht und das Letztere die Interessen des salvadorianischen Militärs.
Der Vorsitzende der PDC, José Napoleón Duarte, war von 1964 bis 1970 Bürgermeister von San Salvador. Er gewann drei Wahlen während des Regimes von PCN-Präsident Julio Adalberto Rivera Carballo, der freie Wahlen für Bürgermeister und die Nationalversammlung erlaubte. Duarte kandidierte später als Präsident mit einer politischen Gruppierung, die National Opposition Union (UNO) genannt wurde, wurde jedoch bei den Präsidentschaftswahlen von 1972 geschlagen. Er verlor gegen den ehemaligen Innenminister, Oberst Arturo Armando Molina, bei einer Wahl, die weithin als betrügerisch angesehen wurde; Molina wurde zum Sieger erklärt, obwohl Duarte die Mehrheit der Stimmen erhalten hatte. Auf Antrag einiger Offiziere unterstützte Duarte eine Revolte, um gegen den Wahlbetrug zu protestieren, wurde jedoch gefangengenommen, gefoltert und später verbannt. Duarte kehrte 1979 in das Land zurück, um in die Politik einzusteigen, nachdem er als Ingenieur an Projekten in Venezuela gearbeitet hatte.
Salvadorianischer Bürgerkrieg (1979–1992)
Im Oktober 1979 brachte ein Staatsstreich die Revolutionäre Regierungsjunta von El Salvador an die Macht. Es verstaatlichte viele private Unternehmen und übernahm viel privates Land. Das Ziel dieser neuen Junta war es, die revolutionäre Bewegung zu stoppen, die als Reaktion auf Duartes gestohlene Wahlen bereits im Gange war. Dennoch widersetzte sich die Oligarchie der Agrarreform, und eine Junta bildete sich mit jungen liberalen Elementen aus der Armee wie General Majano und General Gutierrez [37][38] sowie mit Progressiven wie Guillermo Ungo und Alvarez.
Der Druck der Oligarchie löste die Junta bald auf, da sie nicht in der Lage war, die Armee bei der Unterdrückung der Gewerkschaftsrechte zu kontrollieren , Agrarreform, bessere Löhne, zugängliche Gesundheitsversorgung und freie Meinungsäußerung. Inzwischen breitete sich die Guerilla-Bewegung in allen Bereichen der salvadorianischen Gesellschaft aus. Schüler der Mittel- und Oberschule waren in MERS (Movimiento Estudiantil Revolucionario de Secundaria, Revolutionäre Bewegung der Sekundarschüler) organisiert; College-Studenten waren an AGEUS (Asociacion de Estudiantes Universitarios Salvadorenos; Vereinigung der Salvadorianischen College-Studenten) beteiligt; und Arbeiter wurden in BPR (Bloque Popular Revolucionario, Revolutionärer Volksblock) organisiert. Im Oktober 1980 hatten mehrere andere große Guerillagruppen der salvadorianischen Linken die Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) gebildet. Ende der 70er Jahre töteten Todesschwadronen jeden Tag etwa 10 Menschen, und das FMLN hatte 6.000 bis 8.000 aktive Guerillas und Hunderttausende von Teilzeit-Milizen, Unterstützern und Sympathisanten. [39]
Die USA unterstützten und finanzierten das Schaffung einer zweiten Junta, um das politische Umfeld zu verändern und die Ausbreitung eines linken Aufstandes zu stoppen. Napoleón Duarte wurde aus seinem Exil in Venezuela abberufen, um die neue Junta anzuführen. Eine Revolution war jedoch bereits im Gange und seine neue Rolle als Chef der Junta wurde von der allgemeinen Bevölkerung als opportunistisch angesehen. Das Ergebnis des Aufstandes konnte er nicht beeinflussen. Óscar Romero, Erzbischof von San Salvador, prangerte Ungerechtigkeiten und Massaker an, die von Regierungstruppen an Zivilisten verübt wurden. Er wurde als "Stimme der Stimmlosen" betrachtet, aber am 24. März 1980 wurde er von einer Todesschwadron ermordet, als er die Messe sagte. [40] Einige meinen, dies sei der Beginn des vollständigen Bürgerkriegs von Salvador, der von 1980 bis 1992 dauerte Eine unbekannte Anzahl von Menschen "verschwand" während des Konflikts, und die UNO berichtet, dass mehr als 75.000 Menschen getötet wurden. [41] Das in den USA trainierte Atlacatl-Bataillon der Salvadorianischen Armee war für das Massaker von El Mozote verantwortlich, bei dem mehr als 800 Zivilisten ermordet wurden. Über die Hälfte von ihnen sind Kinder, das Massaker von El Calabozo und der Mord an UCA-Gelehrten. [42]
Am 16. Januar 1992 wurden die Regierung von El Salvador, vertreten durch Präsident Alfredo Cristiani, und die FMLN, vertreten durch die Kommandanten der fünf Guerilla-Gruppen - Shafik Handal, Joaquín Villalobos, Salvador Sánchez Cerén, Francisco Jovel und Eduardo Sancho unterzeichneten Friedensabkommen der Vereinten Nationen, mit denen der 12-jährige Bürgerkrieg beendet wurde. An dieser Veranstaltung, die auf dem Chapultepec-Schloss in Mexiko stattfand, nahmen US-amerikanische Würdenträger und andere Vertreter der internationalen Gemeinschaft teil. Nach der Unterzeichnung des Waffenstillstands stand der Präsident auf und schüttelte den Ex-Guerilla-Kommandanten die Hand, was vielfach bewundert wurde.
Post-war (1992–present)
The so-called Chapultepec Peace Accords mandated reductions in the size of the army, and the dissolution of the National Police, the Treasury Police, the National Guard and the Civilian Defense, a paramilitary group. A new Civil Police was to be organized. Judicial immunity for crimes committed by the armed forces ended; the government agreed to submit to the recommendations of a Commission on the Truth for El Salvador (Comisión de la Verdad Para El Salvador)which would "investigate serious acts of violence occurring since 1980, and the nature and effects of the violence, and...recommend methods of promoting national reconciliation." In 1993 the Commission delivered its findings reporting human rights violations on both sides of the conflict.[43] Five days later the El Salvadoran legislature passed an amnesty law for all acts of violence during the period.
From 1989 until 2004, Salvadorans favored the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) party, voting in ARENA presidents in every election (Alfredo Cristiani, Armando Calderón Sol, Francisco Flores Pérez, Antonio Saca) until 2009, when Mauricio Funes was elected president from the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) party.
Economic reforms since the early 1990s brought major benefits in terms of improved social conditions, diversification of the export sector, and access to international financial markets at investment grade level. Crime remains a major problem for the investment climate.
This[clarification needed] all ended in 2001, and support for ARENA weakened. Internal turmoil in ARENA weakened the party also, while the FMLN united and broadened its support.[44]
The unsuccessful attempts of the left-wing party to win presidential elections led to its selection of a journalist rather than a former guerrilla leader as a candidate. On March 15, 2009, Mauricio Funes, a television figure, became the first president from the FMLN party. He was inaugurated on June 1, 2009. One focus of the Funes government has been revealing the alleged corruption from the past government.[45]
ARENA formally expelled Saca from the party in December 2009. With 12 loyalists in the National Assembly, Saca established his own party, GANA (Gran Alianza por la Unidad Nacional or Grand Alliance for National Unity), and entered into a tactical legislative alliance with the FMLN.[46] After three years in office, with Saca's GANA party providing the FMLN with a legislative majority, Funes had not taken action to either investigate or to bring corrupt former officials to justice.
Early in the new millennium, El Salvador's government created the Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales – the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN) and began promoting the integration of climate change into national policy. This move was in response to the increase in extreme weather events affecting the country. Initially MARN aimed to fulfil the country's obligations following its ratification of the UNFCCC and the Kyoto protocol However, since Hurricane Ida in 2009, the government's stance has shifted towards integrating risk reduction into all areas of policy, including financial.[47]
In a specific effort to increase the resilience of its economy and people to climate-related events, El Salvador commissioned a project in 2011 to develop and implement a National Policy and Strategy for Climate Change, which culminated with the launch of the National Environmental Policy in June 2012 and the National Environmental Strategy in June 2013, both incorporating climate change goals. This work was undertaken with support from the Climate & Development Knowledge Network. The government is now preparing action plans for putting the strategy into practice.[47]
Geography
El Salvador lies in the isthmus of Central America between latitudes 13° and 15°N, and longitudes 87° and 91°W. It stretches 270 km (168 mi) from west-northwest to east-southeast and 142 km (88 mi) north to south, with a total area of 21,041 km2 (8,124 sq mi). As the smallest country in continental America, El Salvador is affectionately called Pulgarcito de America (the "Tom Thumb of the Americas"). The highest point in El Salvador is Cerro El Pital, at 2,730 metres (8,957 ft), on the border with Honduras.
El Salvador has a long history of destructive earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The capital San Salvador was destroyed in 1756 and 1854, and it suffered heavy damage in the 1919, 1982, and 1986 tremors. El Salvador has over twenty volcanoes, two of them, San Miguel and Izalco, active in recent years. From the early 19th century to the mid-1950s, Izalco erupted with a regularity that earned it the name "Lighthouse of the Pacific." Its brilliant flares were clearly visible for great distances at sea, and at night its glowing lava turned it into a brilliant luminous cone.
El Salvador has over 300 rivers, the most important of which is the Rio Lempa. Originating in Guatemala, the Rio Lempa cuts across the northern range of mountains, flows along much of the central plateau, and cuts through the southern volcanic range to empty into the Pacific. It is El Salvador's only navigable river. It and its tributaries drain about half of the country's area. Other rivers are generally short and drain the Pacific lowlands or flow from the central plateau through gaps in the southern mountain range to the Pacific. These include the Goascorán, Jiboa, Torola, Paz and the Río Grande de San Miguel.
There are several lakes enclosed by volcanic craters in El Salvador, the most important of which are Lake Ilopango (70 km²) and Lake Coatepeque (26 km²). Lake Güija is El Salvador's largest natural lake (44 km²). Several artificial lakes were created by the damming of the Lempa, the largest of which is Embalse Cerrón Grande (135 km²). There are a total 320 km2 (123.6 sq mi) of water within El Salvador's borders.
El Salvador shares borders with Guatemala and Honduras, the total national boundary length is 546 km (339 mi): 126 miles (203 km) with Guatemala and 343 km (213 mi) with Honduras. It is the only Central American country that has no Caribbean coastline. The coastline on the Pacific is 307 km (191 mi) long.
Two parallel mountain ranges cross El Salvador to the west with a central plateau between them and a narrow coastal plain hugging the Pacific. These physical features divide the country into two physiographic regions. The mountain ranges and central plateau, covering 85% of the land, comprise the interior highlands. The remaining coastal plains are referred to as the Pacific lowlands.
Climate
El Salvador has a tropical climate with pronounced wet and dry seasons. Temperatures vary primarily with elevation and show little seasonal change. The Pacific lowlands are uniformly hot; the central plateau and mountain areas are more moderate. The rainy season extends from May to October; this time of year is referred to as invierno or winter. Almost all the annual rainfall occurs during this period; yearly totals, particularly on southern-facing mountain slopes, can be as high as 2170 mm.
The best time to visit El Salvador would be at the beginning or end of the dry season. Protected areas and the central plateau receive less, although still significant, amounts. Rainfall during this season generally comes from low pressure systems formed over the Pacific and usually falls in heavy afternoon thunderstorms. Hurricanes occasionally form in the Pacific with the notable exception of Hurricane Mitch, which formed in the Atlantic and crossed Central America.
From November through April, the northeast trade winds control weather patterns; this time of year is referred to as veranoor summer. During these months, air flowing from the Caribbean has lost most of its precipitation while passing over the mountains in Honduras. By the time this air reaches El Salvador, it is dry, hot, and hazy, and the country experiences hot weather, excluding the northern higher mountain ranges, where temperatures will be cool. In the extreme northeastern part of the country near Cerro El Pital, snow is known to fall during summer as well as during winter due to the high elevations (it is the coldest part of the country).
Natural disasters
Extreme weather events
El Salvador's position on the Pacific Ocean also makes it subject to severe weather conditions, including heavy rainstorms and severe droughts, both of which may be made more extreme by the El Niño and La Niña effects. Severe deforestation and soil erosion have made the landscape vulnerable to landslides and forest fires. These characteristics, coupled with severe fiscal constraints, make the nation highly susceptible to the impacts of extreme weather events.[48]
In the summer of 2001 a severe drought destroyed 80% of El Salvador's crops, causing famine in the countryside.[49][50] On October 4, 2005, severe rains resulted in dangerous flooding and landslides, which caused a minimum of fifty deaths.[51] In 2010, losses to agriculture from flooding exceeded US$100 million, while those resulting from drought were US$38 million.[52]
El Salvador's location in Central America also makes it vulnerable to severe storms and hurricanes coming off the Caribbean. Since the 1990s, there has been an increase in the frequency and duration of storms, as well as a marked change in the pattern of their occurrence. Hurricanes used to strike El Salvador infrequently, only came from the Atlantic and were limited to the months of September and October. However, since the mid 1990s, such storms have occurred more frequently, originated in both the Atlantic and Pacific, and have struck in six different months of the year.[47]
Earthquakes and volcanic activity
El Salvador lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire, and is thus subject to significant tectonic activity, including frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity. Recent examples include the earthquake on January 13, 2001 that measured 7.7 on the Richter magnitude scale and caused a landslide that killed more than 800 people;[51] and another earthquake only a month later, on February 13, 2001, that killed 255 people and damaged about 20% of the nation's housing. Luckily, many families were able to find safety from the landslides caused by the earthquake.
The San Salvador area has been hit by earthquakes in 1576, 1659, 1798, 1839, 1854, 1873, 1880, 1917, 1919, 1965, 1986, 2001 and 2005.[53] The 5.7 Mw-earthquake of 1986 resulted in 1,500 deaths, 10,000 injuries, and 100,000 people left homeless.[54][55]
El Salvador's most recent destructive volcanic eruption took place on October 1, 2005, when the Santa Ana Volcano spewed a cloud of ash, hot mud and rocks that fell on nearby villages and caused two deaths. The most severe volcanic eruption in this area occurred in the 5th century AD when the Ilopango volcano erupted with a VEI strength of 6, producing widespread pyroclastic flows and devastating Mayan cities.[56]
The Santa Ana Volcano in El Salvador is active;[57] the most recent eruptions were in 1904 and 2005. Lago de Coatepeque (one of El Salvador's lakes) was created by water filling the caldera that formed after a massive eruption.
The British Imperial College's El Salvador Project aims to build earthquake-proof buildings in remote areas of the country.
Biodiversity and endangered species
There are eight species of sea turtles in the world; six of them nest on the coasts of Central America, and four make their home on the Salvadoran coast: the leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), the hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), the green sea turtle (black) (Chelonia agasizzii) and the olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea). Of these four species, the most common is the olive ridley turtle, followed by the green sea turtle. The other two species, hawksbill and leatherback, are much more difficult to find as they are critically endangered, while the olive ridley and green sea turtle are in danger of extinction.
Recent conservation efforts provide hope for the future of the country's biological diversity. In 1997, the government established the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources. A general environmental framework law was approved by the National Assembly in 1999. Specific legislation to protect wildlife is still pending.[when?] In addition, a number of non-governmental organizations are doing important work to safeguard some of the country's most important forested areas. Foremost among these is SalvaNatura, which manages El Impossible, the country's largest national park under an agreement with El Salvador's environmental authorities.
Despite these efforts, much remains to be done.
It is estimated that there are 500 species of birds, 1,000 species of butterflies, 400 species of orchids, 800 species of trees, and 800 species of marine fish in El Salvador.
Government and politics
The 1983 Constitution is the highest legal authority in the country. El Salvador has a democratic and representative government, whose three bodies are:
- The Executive Branch, headed by the President of the Republic, who is elected by direct vote and remains in office for five years. He can be elected to only one term. The president has a Cabinet of Ministers whom he appoints, and is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
- The Legislative Branch, called El Salvador's Legislative Assembly (unicameral), consisting of 84 deputies.
- The Judiciary, headed by the Supreme Court, which is composed of 15 judges, one of them being elected as President of the Judiciary.
After the Civil War, the Chapultepec Peace Accords (1992) created the new National Civil Police, the Attorney for the Defense of Human Rights and the Supreme Electoral Tribunal. The Peace Accords re-imagined the Frente Farabundo Martí para la Liberación Nacional (FMLN) as a political party and redefined the role of the army to be for the defense of the sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Accords also removed some security forces who were in command of the army, such as the National Guard, Treasury Police and special battalions that were formed to fight against the insurgency of the 1980s.
The political framework of El Salvador is a presidential representative democratic republic with a multiform, multi-party system. The President, currently Salvador Sánchez Cerén, is both head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Legislative Assembly. The country also has an independent Judiciary and Supreme Court.
Political culture
El Salvador has a multi-party system. Two political parties, the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) and the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) have tended to dominate elections. ARENA candidates won four consecutive presidential elections until the election of Mauricio Funes of the FMLN in March 2009. The FMLN Party is Leftist in ideology, and is split between the dominant Marxist-Leninist faction in the legislature, and the social liberal wing led by President Funes.
Geographically, the departments of the Central region, especially the capital and the coastal regions, known as departamentos rojos, or red departments, are relatively Leftist. The departamentos azules, or blue departments in the east, western and highland regions are relatively conservative. The winner of the 2014 presidential election, Salvador Sánchez Cerén belongs to the FMLN party. In the 2015 elections for mayors and members of the National Assembly, ARENA appeared to be the winner with tight control of the National Assembly.
Foreign relations
In November, 1950 El Salvador helped the newly empowered 14th Dalai Lama by supporting his Tibetan Government cabinet minister's telegram requesting an appeal before the General Assembly of the United Nations to stop the Communist China's People's Liberation Army's invasion of Tibet. "Only the tiny country of El Salvador agreed to sponsor Tibet's plea."[58]"At the UN, no one was willing to stand up beside El Salvador. The other nations had overriding self-interests, which made it impossible for them to support San Salvador's attempt to bring the invasion before the General Assembly."[58] With no other countries in support, "the UN unanimously dropped the Tibetan plea from its agenda."[58]
El Salvador is a member of the United Nations and several of its specialized agencies, the Organization of American States (OAS), the Central American Common Market (CACM), the Central American Parliament (PARLACEN), and the Central American Integration System (SICA). It actively participates in the Central American Security Commission (CASC), which seeks to promote regional arms control.
El Salvador also is a member of the World Trade Organization and is pursuing regional free trade agreements. An active participant in the Summit of the Americas process, El Salvador chairs a working group on market access under the Free Trade Area of the Americas initiative.
Military
El Salvador has an army, airforce and modest navy. There are around 17,000 personnel in the armed forces in total.[59]
Human rights
Amnesty International has drawn attention to several arrests of police officers for unlawful police killings. Other current issues to gain Amnesty International's attention in the past 10 years include missing children, failure of law enforcement to properly investigate and prosecute crimes against women, and rendering organized labor illegal.[60]
Administrative divisions
El Salvador is divided into 14 departments (departamentos), which in turn are subdivided into 262 municipalities (municipios).
Department names and capitals for the 14 Salvadoran Departments:
Economy
El Salvador's economy has been hampered at times by natural disasters such as earthquakes and hurricanes, by government policies that mandate large economic subsidies, and by official corruption. Subsidies became such a problem that in April 2012, the International Monetary Fund suspended a $750 million loan to the central government. President Funes' chief of cabinet, Alex Segovia, acknowledged that the economy was at the "point of collapse."[61]
Antiguo Cuscatlán has the highest per capita income of all the cities in the country, and is a center of international investment.[citation needed]
GDP in purchasing power parity (PPP) in 2008 was estimated at US$25.895 billion. The service sector is the largest component of GDP at 64.1%, followed by the industrial sector at 24.7% (2008 est.). Agriculture represents only 11.2% of GDP (2010 est.)
The GDP grew after 1996 at an annual rate that averaged 3.2% real growth. The government committed to free market initiatives, and the 2007 GDP's real growth rate was 4.7%.[62]
In December 1999, net international reserves equaled US$1.8 billion or roughly five months of imports. Having this hard currency buffer to work with, the Salvadoran government undertook a monetary integration plan beginning January 1, 2001 by which the U.S. dollar became legal tender alongside the Salvadoran colón, and all formal accounting was done in U.S. dollars. Thus, the government has formally limited the implementing of open market monetary policies to influence short-term variables in the economy. As of September 2007, net international reserves stood at $2.42 billion.[51][63]
It has long been a challenge in El Salvador to develop new growth sectors for a more diversified economy. In the past, the country produced gold and silver,[64] but recent attempts to reopen the mining sector, which were expected to add hundreds of millions of dollars to the local economy, collapsed after President Saca shut down the operations of Pacific Rim Mining Corporation. Nevertheless, according to the Central American Institute for Fiscal Studies (Instituto Centroamericano for Estudios Fiscales, by its acronym in Spanish), the contribution of metallic mining was a minuscule 0.3% of the country's GDP between 2010 and 2015.[65] Saca's decision although not lacking political motives, had strong support from local residents and grassroots movements in the country. According to NACLA, incoming President Funes later rejected a company's application for a further permit based on the risk of cyanide contamination on one of the country's main rivers.[66]
As with other former colonies, El Salvador was considered a mono-export economy (an economy that depended heavily on one type of export) for many years. During colonial times, El Salvador was a thriving exporter of indigo, but after the invention of synthetic dyes in the 19th century, the newly created modern state turned to coffee as the main export.
The government has sought to improve the collection of its current revenues, with a focus on indirect taxes. A 10% value-added tax (IVA in Spanish), implemented in September 1992, was raised to 13% in July 1995.
Inflation has been steady and among the lowest in the region. Since 1997 inflation has averaged 3%, with recent years increasing to nearly 5%. As a result of the free trade agreements, from 2000 to 2006, total exports have grown 19% from $2.94 billion to $3.51 billion, and total imports have risen 54% from $4.95 billion to $7.63 billion. This has resulted in a 102% increase in the trade deficit, from $2.01 billion to $4.12 billion.[68]
El Salvador has promoted an open trade and investment environment, and has embarked on a wave of privatization extending to telecommunications, electricity distribution, banking, and pension funds. In late 2006, the government and the Millennium Challenge Corporation signed a five-year, $461 million compact to stimulate economic growth and reduce poverty in the country's northern region, the primary conflict zone during the civil war, through investments in education, public services, enterprise development, and transportation infrastructure. With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency in 2001, El Salvador lost control over monetary policy. Any counter-cyclical policy response to the downturn must be through fiscal policy, which is constrained by legislative requirements for a two-thirds majority to approve any international financing.
Remittances from abroad
El Salvador leads the region in remittances per capita, with inflows equivalent to nearly all export income; about a third of all households receive these financial inflows. Remittances from Salvadorans living and working in the United States, sent to family members in El Salvador, are a major source of foreign income and offset the substantial trade deficit of $4.12 billion. Remittances have increased steadily in the last decade, and reached an all-time high of $3.32 billion in 2006 (an increase of 17% over the previous year).[69] approximately 16.2% of gross domestic product(GDP).
Remittances have had positive and negative effects on El Salvador. In 2005, the number of people living in extreme poverty in El Salvador was 20%,[70] according to a United Nations Development Program report. Without remittances, the number of Salvadorans living in extreme poverty would rise to 37%. While Salvadoran education levels have gone up, wage expectations have risen faster than either skills or productivity. For example, some Salvadorans are no longer willing to take jobs that pay them less than what they receive monthly from family members abroad. This has led to an influx of Hondurans and Nicaraguans who are willing to work for the prevailing wage. Also, the local propensity for consumption over investment has increased.
Money from remittances has also increased prices for certain commodities such as real estate. With much higher wages, many Salvadorans abroad can afford higher prices for houses in El Salvador than local Salvadorans, and thus push up the prices that all Salvadorans must pay.[71]
Free trade agreements
In 2006, El Salvador was the first country to ratify the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement. CAFTA has bolstered exports of processed foods, sugar, and ethanol, and supported investment in the apparel sector, which faced Asian competition with the expiration of the Multi-Fiber Agreement in 2005. In anticipation of the declines in the apparel sector's competitiveness, the previous administration sought to diversify the economy by promoting the country as a regional distribution and logistics hub, and by promoting tourism investment through tax incentives.
There are a total of 15 free trade zones in El Salvador. El Salvador signed the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) — negotiated by the five countries of Central America and the Dominican Republic — with the United States in 2004. CAFTA requires that the Salvadoran government adopt policies that foster free trade. El Salvador has signed free trade agreements with Mexico, Chile, the Dominican Republic, and Panama and increased its trade with those countries. El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua also are negotiating a free trade agreement with Canada. In October 2007, these four countries and Costa Rica began free trade agreement negotiations with the European Union. Negotiations started in 2006 for a free trade agreement with Colombia.
Official corruption and foreign investment
In an analysis of ARENA's electoral defeat in 2009, the U.S. Embassy in San Salvador pointed to official corruption under the Saca administration as a significant reason for public rejection of continued ARENA government. According to a secret diplomatic cable made public by WikiLeaks, "While the Salvadoran public may be inured to self-serving behavior by politicians, many in ARENA believe that the brazen manner in which Saca and his people are widely perceived to have used their positions for personal enrichment went beyond the pale. ARENA deputy Roberto d'Aubuisson, son of ARENA founder Roberto d'Aubuisson, told [a U.S. diplomat] that Saca 'deliberately ignored' his Public Works Minister's government contract kickbacks scheme, even after the case was revealed in the press. Furthermore, considerable evidence exists, including from U.S. business sources, that the Saca administration pushed laws and selectively enforced regulations with the specific intent to benefit Saca family business interests."[72]
Subsequent policies under Funes administrations improved El Salvador to foreign investment, and the World Bank in 2014 rated El Salvador 109, a little better than Belize (118) and Nicaragua (119) in the World Bank's annual "Ease of doing business" index.[73]
As per Santander Trade, a Spanish think tank in foreign investment, "Foreign investment into El Salvador has been steadily growing during the last few years. In 2013, the influx of FDI increased. Nevertheless, El Salvador receives less FDI than other countries of Central America. The government has made little progress in terms of improving the business climate. In addition to this, the limited size of its domestic market, weak infrastructures and institutions, as well as the high level of criminality have been real obstacles to investors. However, El Salvador is the second most "business friendly" country in South America in terms of business taxation. It also has a young and skilled labor force and a strategic geographical position. The country's membership in the DR-CAFTA, as well as its reinforced integration to the C4 countries (producers of cotton) should lead to an increase of FDI."[74]
Foreign companies have lately resorted to arbitration in international trade tribunals in total disagreement with Salvadoran government policies. In 2008, El Salvador sought international arbitration against Italy's Enel Green Power, on behalf of Salvadoran state-owned electric companies for a geothermal project Enel had invested in. Four years later, Enel indicated it would seek arbitration against El Salvador, blaming the government for technical problems that prevent it from completing its investment.[75] The government came to its defense claiming that Art 109 of the constitution does not allow any government (regardless of the party they belong), to privatize the resources of the national soil (in this case geothermic energy). The dispute came to an end in December 2014 when both parties came to a settlement, from which no details have been released. The small country had yielded to pressure from the Washington based powerful ICSID.[76] The U.S. Embassy warned in 2009 that the Salvadoran government's populist policies of mandating artificially low electricity prices were damaging private sector profitability, including the interests of American investors in the energy sector.[77] The U.S. Embassy noted the corruption of El Salvador's judicial system and quietly urged American businesses to include "arbitration clauses, preferably with a foreign venue," when doing business in the country.[78]
The U.S. Embassy warned in 2009 that the Salvadoran government's populist policies of mandating artificially low electricity prices were damaging private sector profitability, including the interests of American investors in the energy sector.[77] The U.S. Embassy noted the corruption of El Salvador's judicial system and quietly urged American businesses to include "arbitration clauses, preferably with a foreign venue," when doing business in the country.[78]
On the other hand, a 2008 report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development [2] indicates that one third of the generation of electricity in El Salvador was publicly owned while two thirds was in American hands and other foreign ownership. It is only natural for a small, under-developed country like El Salvador to subsidize some of the resources for the vast majority of its poor population.
Although some events may have tarnished the image of the El Salvadoran government,[79] not everything is bad news. In terms of how people perceived the levels of public corruption in 2014, El Salvador ranks 80 out of 175 countries as per the Corruption Perception Index.[80] El Salvador's rating compares relatively well with Panama (94 of 175) and Costa Rica (47 of 175).
Tourism
It was estimated that 1,394,000 international tourists would visit El Salvador in 2014.[81] Tourism contributed US$855.5 million to El Salvador's GDP in 2013. This represented 3.5% of total GDP.[82]
Tourism directly supported 80,500 jobs in 2013. This represented 3.1% of total employment in El Salvador.[82] In 2013, tourism indirectly supported 210,000 jobs, representing 8.1% of total employment in El Salvador.[82]
The airport serving international flights in El Salvador is Comalapa International Airport. This airport is located about 40 km (25 mi) southeast of San Salvador.[83]
Most North American and European tourists seek out El Salvador's beaches and nightlife. Besides these two attractions, El Salvador's tourism landscape is slightly different from those of other Central American countries. Because of its geographic size and urbanization there are not many nature-themed tourist destinations such as ecotours or archaeological sites open to the public. Surfing is a natural tourism sector that has gained popularity in recent years as Salvadoran beaches have become increasingly popular.
Surfers visit many beaches on the coast of La Libertad and the east end of El Salvador, finding surfing spots that are not yet overcrowded. The use of the United States dollar as Salvadoran currency and direct flights of 4 to 6 hours from most cities in the United States are factors that attract American tourists. Urbanization and Americanization of Salvadoran culture has also led to the abundance of American-style malls, stores, and restaurants in the three main urban areas, especially greater San Salvador.
According to the El Salvadoran newspaper El Diario De Hoythe top 10 attractions are: the coastal beaches, La Libertad, Ruta Las Flores, Suchitoto, Playa Las Flores in San Miguel, La Palma, Santa Ana (location of the country's highest volcano), Nahuizalco, Apaneca, Juayua, and San Ignacio.[84]
Infrastructure
Water supply and sanitation
The level of access to water supply and sanitation has been increased significantly. A 2015 conducted study by the University of North Carolina called El Salvador the country that has achieved the greatest progress in the world in terms of increased access to water supply and sanitation and the reduction of inequity in access between urban and rural areas.[85] However, water resources are seriously polluted and a large part of the wastewater discharged into the environment without any treatment. Institutionally a single public institution is both de facto in charge of setting sector policy and of being the main service provider. Attempts at reforming and modernizing the sector through new laws have not borne fruit over the past 20 years.
Demographics
| Population in El Salvador[3] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Million | ||
| 1950 | 2.2 | ||
| 2000 | 5.8 | ||
| 2016 | 6.3 | ||
El Salvador's population was 6,344,722 in 2016,[3] compared to 2,200,000 in 1950. In 2010 the percentage of the population below the age of 15 was 32.1%, 61% were between 15 and 65 years of age, while 6.9% were 65 years or older.[86]
The capital city of San Salvador has a population of about 2.1 million people. An estimated 42% of El Salvador's population live in rural areas. Urbanization has expanded at a phenomenal rate in El Salvador since the 1960s, with millions moving to the cities and creating associated problems for urban planning and services.
There are up to 100,000 Nicaraguans living in El Salvador.[87]
Ethnic groups
El Salvador's population is composed of Mestizos, whites, and indigenous peoples. Eighty-six percent of Salvadorans are of mestizo ancestry, having mixed indigenous and European ancestry.[88] In the mestizo population, Salvadorans who are racially European, especially Mediterranean, as well as Afro-Salvadoran, and the indigenous people in El Salvador who do not speak indigenous languages or have an indigenous culture, all identify themselves as being culturally mestizo.[89]
12.7% of Salvadorans are white. A majority of Central European immigrants in El Salvador arrived during World War II as refugees from the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Switzerland. There are also a small community of Jews, Palestinian Christians, and Arab Muslims (in particular Palestinians).
0.23% of the population are of full indigenous origin, the ethnic groups are Kakawira which represents 0.07% of the total country's population, then (Pipil) 0.06%, (Lenca) 0.04% and others minors groups 0.06%. Very few Amerindians have retained their customs and traditions, having over time assimilated into the dominant Mestizo/Spanish culture.[90]
There is a small Afro-Salvadoran that is 0.13% of the total population, with Blacks having traditionally been prevented from immigrating via government policies.[91][92]
Among the immigrant groups in El Salvador, Palestinian Christians stand out.[93] Though few in number, their descendants have attained great economic and political power in the country, as evidenced by the election of ex-president Antonio Saca, whose opponent in the 2004 election, Schafik Handal, was also of Palestinian descent, and the flourishing commercial, industrial, and construction firms owned by this ethnic group.
As of 2004[update]there were approximately 3.2 million Salvadorans living outside El Salvador, with the United States traditionally being the destination of choice for Salvadoran economic migrants. By 2012, there were about 2.0 million Salvadoran immigrants and Americans of Salvadoran descent in the U.S.,[95] making them the sixth largest immigrant group in the country.[96] The second destinatation of Salvadorans living outside is Guatemala, with more than 111,000 persons, mainly in Guatemala City. Salvadorans also live in other nearby countries such as Belize, Honduras and Nicaragua.[97] Other countries with notable Salvadoran communities include Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom (including the Cayman Islands), Sweden, Brazil, Italy, Colombia, and Australia.
Languages
Spanish is the official language and is spoken by virtually all inhabitants. Some indigenous people speak their native tongues (such as Nawat and Maya), but indigenous Salvadorans who do not identify as mestizo constitute only 1% of the country's population. However, all of them can speak Spanish. Q'eqchi' is spoken by immigrants of Guatemalan and Belizean indigenous people living in El Salvador. There have also been recent large migrations of Hondurans and Nicaraguans into the country.[98]
The local Spanish vernacular is called Caliche. Salvadorans use voseo, which is also used in Argentina, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Uruguay. This refers to the use of "vos" as the second person pronoun, instead of "tú". "Caliche" is considered informal, and a few people choose not to use it. Nawat is an indigenous language that has survived, though it is only used by small communities of some elderly Salvadorans in western El Salvador.
Largest cities
Largest cities or towns in El Salvador | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Name | Department | Pop. | Rank | Name | Department | Pop. | ||
 San Salvador  Santa Ana | 1 | San Salvador | San Salvador | 540,989 | 11 | Colón | La Libertad | 96,989 |  Soyapango  San Miguel |
| 2 | Santa Ana | Santa Ana | 245,421 | 12 | Tonacatepeque | San Salvador | 90,896 | ||
| 3 | Soyapango | San Salvador | 241,403 | 13 | Opico | La Libertad | 74,280 | ||
| 4 | San Miguel | San Miguel | 218,410 | 14 | Chalchuapa | Santa Ana | 74,038 | ||
| 5 | Santa Tecla | La Libertad | 164,171 | 15 | Usulután | Usulután | 73,064 | ||
| 6 | Mejicanos | San Salvador | 140,751 | 16 | San Martín | San Salvador | 72,758 | ||
| 7 | Apopa | San Salvador | 131,286 | 17 | Sonsonate | Sonsonate | 71,541 | ||
| 8 | Delgado | San Salvador | 120,200 | 18 | Izalco | Sonsonate | 70,959 | ||
| 9 | Ahuachapán | Ahuachapán | 110,511 | 19 | Cuscatancingo | San Salvador | 66,400 | ||
| 10 | Ilopango | San Salvador | 103,862 | 20 | Metapán | Santa Ana | 65,826 | ||
Religion
The majority of the population in El Salvador is Christian. Roman Catholics (47%) and Protestants (33%) are the two major religious groups in the country, with the Catholic Church the largest denomination.[100] Those not affiliated with any religious group amount to 17% of the population.[100] The remainder of the population (3%) is made up of Jehovah's Witnesses, Hare Krishnas, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Latter-day Saints, and those adhering to indigenous religious beliefs.[100] The number of evangelicals in the country is growing rapidly.[101] However, according to a 2017 poll, Evangelicals have dropped to 28% while the unaffiliated or those who register "no religion" have grown to 30%.[102]Oscar Romero, the first El Salvadoran saint, was canonized by Pope Francis on 14 October 2018.
Health
See Health in El Salvador
Education
The public education system in El Salvador is severely lacking in resources. Class sizes in public schools can be as large as 50 children per classroom. Salvadorans who can afford the cost often choose to send their children to private schools, which are regarded as being better-quality than public schools. Most private schools follow American, European or other advanced systems. Lower-income families are forced to rely on public education.[citation needed]
Education in El Salvador is free through high school. After nine years of basic education (elementary–middle school), students have the option of a two-year high school or a three-year high school. A two-year high school prepares the student for transfer to a university. A three-year high school allows the student to graduate and enter the workforce in a vocational career, or to transfer to a university to further their education in their chosen field.[103]
Universities in El Salvador include a central public institution, the Universidad de El Salvador, and many other specialised private universities.
Crime
Since the early twenty-first century, El Salvador has experienced high crime rates, including gang-related crimes and juvenile delinquency.[104]
El Salvador has the highest murder rate in the world.[105] It is also considered an epicenter of a gang crisis, along with Guatemala and Honduras.[106] In response to this, the government has set up countless programs to try to guide the youth away from gang membership; so far its efforts have not produced any quick results. One of the government programs was a gang reform called "Super Mano Dura" (Super Firm Hand). Super Mano Dura had little success and was highly criticized by the UN. It saw temporary success in 2004 but then saw a rise in crime after 2005. In 2004, the rate of intentional homicides per 100,000 citizens was 41, with 60% of the homicides committed being gang-related.[106]
The Salvadoran government reported that the Super Mano Dura gang legislation led to a 14% drop in murders in 2004. However, El Salvador had 66 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2012, more than triple the rate in Mexico that year.[107][108][109] There are an estimated 25,000 gang members at large in El Salvador with another 9,000 in prison.[107] The most well-known gangs, called "maras" in colloquial Spanish, are Mara Salvatrucha and their rivals Barrio 18. Maras are hunted by death squads including Sombra Negra. New rivals also include the rising mara, The Rebels 13.[110]
As of March 2012[update]El Salvador has seen a 40% drop in crime due to what the Salvadoran government called a gang truce; however, extortions affecting small businesses are not taken into account. In early 2012, there were on average of 16 killings per day; in late March of that year that number dropped to fewer than 5 per day. On April 14, 2012 for the first time in over 3 years there were no killings in El Salvador.[111] Overall, there were 411 killings in January 2012, and in March the number was 188, more than a 40% reduction,[112] while crime in neighboring Honduras had risen to an all-time high.[113] In 2014, crime rose 56% in El Salvador, with the government attributing the rise to a break in the truce between the two major gangs in El Salvador, which began having turf wars.[114]
Presently, the Alto al Crimen or Crime Stoppers program is in operation and provides financial rewards for information leading to the capture of gang leadership. The reward often ranges between US$100 and $500 per call.[115]
Culture
Mestizo culture dominates the country, heavy in both Native American Indigenous and European Spanish influences. A new composite population was formed as a result of intermarrying between the native Mesoamerican population of Cuzcatlan with the European settlers. The Catholic Church plays an important role in the Salvadoran culture. Archbishop Óscar Romero is a national hero for his role in resisting human rights violations that were occurring in the lead-up to the Salvadoran Civil War.[116] Significant foreign personalities in El Salvador were the Jesuit priests and professors Ignacio Ellacuría, Ignacio Martín-Baró, and Segundo Montes, who were murdered in 1989 by the Salvadoran Army during the height of the civil war.
Painting, ceramics and textiles are the principal manual artistic mediums. Writers Francisco Gavidia (1863–1955), Salarrué (Salvador Salazar Arrué) (1899–1975), Claudia Lars, Alfredo Espino, Pedro Geoffroy Rivas, Manlio Argueta, José Roberto Cea, and poet Roque Dalton are among the most important writers from El Salvador. Notable 20th-century personages include the late filmmaker Baltasar Polio, female film director Patricia Chica, artist Fernando Llort, and caricaturist Toño Salazar.
Amongst the more renowned representatives of the graphic arts are the painters Augusto Crespin, Noe Canjura, Carlos Cañas, Giovanni Gil, Julia Díaz, Mauricio Mejia, Maria Elena Palomo de Mejia, Camilo Minero, Ricardo Carbonell, Roberto Huezo, Miguel Angel Cerna, (the painter and writer better known as MACLo), Esael Araujo, and many others. For more information on prominent citizens of El Salvador, check the List of Salvadorans.
Public holidays
| Date | English name | Local name | Observance |
|---|---|---|---|
| March/April | Holy Week/Easter | Semana Santa | Celebrated with Carnival-like events in different cities by the large Catholic population. |
| May 1 | Labor Day | Día del trabajo | International Labor Day |
| May 3 | The Day of the Cross | Día de la Cruz | A celebration with precolonial origins, linked to the advent of the rainy season. People decorate a cross in their yards with fruit and garlands, in the belief that if they do not, the devil will appear and dance at their yard. They then go from house to house to kneel in front of the altar and make the sign of the cross. |
| May 7 | Soldiers' Day | Día del Soldado | Marks the founding of its armed forces in 1824. |
| May 10 | Mother's Day | Día de las Madres | A day to celebrate motherhood, similar to many other countries Mother's Day. |
| June 17 | Father's Day | Día del Padre | A day to celebrate fatherhood, similar to other countries Father's Day. |
| August 1–7 | August Festivals | Fiestas de agosto | Week-long festival in celebration of El Salvador del Mundopatron saint of San Salvador. |
| September 15 | Independence Day | Día de la Independencia | Celebrates independence from Spain, achieved in 1821. |
| October 1 | Children's Day | "Día del niño" | Celebration dedicated to the Children of the country, celebrated across the country. |
| October 12 | Ethnic Pride Day | Día de la raza | Celebration dedicated to Christopher Columbus' arrival in America. |
| November 2 | Day of the Dead | El día de los difuntos | A day when most people visit the tombs of deceased loved ones. (November 1 may be commemorated as well.) |
| November 7–13 | National Pupusa Festival | Festival Nacional De La Pupusa | This week is the national commemoration of the national food (Pupusa). |
| November 21 | Day of the Queen of Peace | Dia de la Reina de la Paz | Day of the Queen of Peace, the patron saint. Also celebrated, the San Miguel Carnival, (carnaval de San Miguel), celebrated in San Miguel City, similar to Mardi Gras of New Orleans, where one can enjoy about 45 music bands on the street.[citation needed] |
| December 25 | Christmas Day (Celebrated Dec. 24th) | Noche Buena | In many communities, December 24 (Christmas Eve) is the major day of celebration, often to the point that it is considered the actual day of Navidad — with December 25 serving as a day of rest. |
| December 31 | New Year's Eve | Fin de año | The final day of the Gregorian year, and the day before New Year's Day is celebrated in El Salvador with family reunions. |
Cuisine
One of El Salvador's notable dishes is the pupusa. Pupusas are handmade corn tortillas (made of masa de maíz or masa de arroza maize or rice flour dough used in Latin American cuisine) stuffed with one or more of the following: cheese (usually a soft Salvadoran cheese such as quesillosimilar to mozzarella), chicharrónor refried beans. Sometimes the filling is queso con loroco (cheese combined with lorocoa vine flower bud native to Central America).[117]
Pupusas revueltas are pupusas filled with beans, cheese and pork. There are also vegetarian options. Some adventurous restaurants even offer pupusas stuffed with shrimp or spinach. The name pupusa comes from the Pipil-Nahuatl word, pupushahua. The precise origins of the pupusa are debated, although its presence in El Salvador is known to predate the arrival of the Spaniards.[117]
Two other typical Salvadoran dishes are yuca frita and panes con pollo. Yuca frita is deep fried cassava root served with curtido (a pickled cabbage, onion and carrot topping) and pork rinds with pescaditas (fried baby sardines). The Yuca is sometimes served boiled instead of fried. Pan con pollo/pavo (bread with chicken/turkey) are warm turkey or chicken-filled submarine sandwiches. The bird is marinated and then roasted with Pipil spices and handpulled. This sandwich is traditionally served with tomato and watercress along with cucumber, onion, lettuce, mayonnaise, and mustard.
One of El Salvador's typical breakfasts is fried plantain, usually served with cream. It is common in Salvadoran restaurants and homes, including those of immigrants to the United States.
Alguashte, a condiment made from dried, ground pepitas, is commonly incorporated into savoury and sweet Salvadoran dishes.
"Maria Luisa" is a dessert commonly found in El Salvador. It is a layered cake that is soaked in orange marmalade and sprinkled with powdered sugar.
A popular drink that Salvadorans enjoy is Horchataa drink native to the Valencian Community in Spain. Horchata is most commonly made of the morro seed ground into a powder and added to milk or water, and sugar. Horchata is drank year-round, and can be drank at any time of day. It mostly is accompanied by a plate of pupusas or fried yuca. Horchata from El Salvador has a very distinct taste and is not to be confused with Mexican horchatawhich is rice-based. Coffee is also a common morning beverage.[118]
Other popular drinks in El Salvador include Ensalada a drink made of chopped fruit swimming in fruit juice, and Kolachampana sugar cane-flavored carbonated beverage.
One of the most popular desserts is the cake Pastel de tres leches (Cake of three milks), consisting of three types of milk: evaporated milk, condensed milk, and cream.
Music
Salvadoran music is a mixture of indigenous Lenca, Maya, Cacaopera, Pipil and Spanish influences. Music includes religious songs (mostly used to celebrate Christmas and other holidays, especially feast days of the saints). Satirical and rural lyrical themes are common. Cuban, Colombian, and Mexican music has infiltrated the country, especially salsa and cumbia. Popular music in El Salvador uses marimbatehpe'chflutes, drums, scrapers and gourds, as well as more recently imported guitars and other instruments. El Salvador's well known folk dance is known as Xuc which originated in Cojutepeque, Cuscatlan. Other musical repertoire consists of danza, pasillo, marcha and canciones.
Sport
Football is the most popular sport in El Salvador. The El Salvador national football team qualified for the FIFA World Cup in 1970 and 1982. Their qualification for the 1970 tournament was marred by the Football War, a war against Honduras, whose team El Salvador's had defeated.
The national football team play at the Estadio Cuscatlán in San Salvador. It opened in 1976 and seats 53,400, making it the largest stadium in Central America and the Caribbean.[119]
See also
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Further reading
- "Background Notes", Background Notes: El SalvadorJanuary 2008. Retrieved March 6, 2008.
- Bonner, Raymond. Weakness and Deceit: U.S. Policy and El Salvador. New York: Times Books, 1984.
- CIA World Factbook"El Salvador", February 28, 2008. Retrieved March 6, 2008.
- "Country Specific Information", U.S. State DepartmentOctober 3, 2007. Retrieved March 6, 2008.
- Danner, Mark. The Massacre at El Mozote: A Parable of the Cold War. New York: Vintage Books, 1994.
- Foley, Erin. 'Cultures of the world, El Salvador. 1995
- Montgomery, Tommie Sue. Revolution in El Salvador: From Civil Strife to Civil Peace. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 1995.
- Rosa, Audrey Celeste (1998). The courage to change: Salvadoran stories of personal and social transformation (El Salvador) (M.A. thesis). Wilfrid Laurier University.
- Stadler, Sidney. It started with an oyster. The Memoirs of Sidney M. Stadler, CBE. Penna Press 1975. Autobiography of a British businessman and diplomat in El Salvador, with much on Salvadoran society and politics from the 1920s to 1950s.
- Vilas, Carlos. Between Earthquakes and Volcanoes: Market, State, and the Revolution America. New York: Monthly Review Press. 1995.
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