Home | Business News | Browse by Publication | N | NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs

DEFINING PROTEST AS TERRORISM, EL SALVADOR RETURNING TO REPRESSIVE PAST.

Article Excerpt
El Salvador's downward spiral of violence and repression took another turn on July 2, when 12 members of popular organizations and a journalist were arrested and accused of "acts of terrorism" for taking part in demonstrations against the privatization of water resources. The protests occurred in Suchitoto, a colonial tourist town some 44 km outside of San Salvador. Hundreds of activists were there to attend a forum on the water issue and to protest the arrival of President Antonio Saca, who was there to announce what he called a plan to decentralize drinking-water services.

The demonstrators were attacked by riot squads of the Policia Nacional Civil (PNC) as they blocked roads in anticipation of the arrival of the official party, and hundreds of campesinos from surrounding communities confronted officers of the Unidad del Mantenimiento del Orden (UMO) with sticks and stones in the town square. The police fought the protesters using tear gas and rubber bullets. The protest stopped the official rally and caused Saca to be evacuated by helicopter.

Police injured several people, including Reuters photographer Luis Galdamez, who was covering the events, but the more serious and lasting damage may have been that done to the fabric...