by Sean Gaston, Seattle CISPES volunteer.

El Salvador has come a long way in the years since the civil war, with an FMLN candidate having won the presidency in 2009.  This was, of course, a resounding victory for the FMLN party, but it was also a victory for the people of El Salvador.  During the civil war, the FMLN represented the will of the common people, united for the cause of removing the government that was in power at the time.  The United States was on the side of the conservative powers, though, assisting in restoration of an oppressive force into power, as this would be beneficial to American interest.  Nonetheless, the people were successful.  CISPES members across the US flooded the State Department with calls, letters, and emails demanding that the US hold a position of neutrality in the elections.  For the first time ever, the US issued a statement of neutrality.  And now, there is talk about the US trying to influence the outcome of the Salvadoran elections in 2014, by funneling monetary contributions to ARENA candidate, Norman Quijano’s, campaign.  So for the upcoming elections, we are again demanding that the US commit to neutrality.

The United States typically will fund the campaigns of candidates that support the interests of the United States, and encourage a government that benefits corporate interest and a spread of capitalism.  This is the essence of neocolonialism, though, and ensures that, by way of constrictive trade agreements and the spread of multinational corporations, the United States will have some say in the governing of other countries.  It is through this sort of involvement that the US also begins to have a large cultural influence on other countries, with an influx of products and American ideology alongside them.  In short, it’s more than buying a candidate; it’s buying insurance of economic and cultural control of El Salvador.

So there is a lot at stake in the 2014 presidential elections.  What we at CISPES would like to see is El Salvador having an election that expresses the will of the citizens of El Salvador.  Without the US influence in the elections, there is hope of fairly balanced coverage of the campaigns of all of the candidates, so the citizens can choose the one they feel best represents their desires, and not have the media flooded with propaganda funded by the United States.  What we want is for all of the candidates to be on equal footing, which means that their visibility should come from the Salvadoran supporters.  The US limiting visibility of other candidates, in favour of any one candidate, would shake the balance of the election, making the results say more about the desires of the US than the desires of El Salvador.