In June, CISPES led a Fact-Finding Delegation to El Salvador where the
delegates learned that all eyes are already on the upcoming 2009
Presidential election—including the Bush Administration’s! Click
here
to support
CISPES NOW and help us build solidarity for the Salvadoran
struggle at this crucial moment.
The delegation’s specific findings will soon be revealed in an
extensive report; for now, you can go here to take the People’s
Pledge
for free and fair elections in El Salvador!
As CISPES solidarity prepares for 2009, a few things we know for
certain:
El Salvador is ripe for change:
➢ the social movement and FMLN are solidly united behind the
candidacy of Mauricio Funes for president and Salvador Sanchez Ceren
for vice president after a triumphant recent convention (see photo
of
Funes at the convention on August 17.)
➢ recent polls show the FMLN ticket ahead by anywhere from 7 to 21 points!
Meanwhile ARENA is using varied program of dirty tactics in a desperate effort to hold onto power:
➢ ARENA has refused to implement recommendations of the Organization of American States to reform the electoral process
➢ They have threatened serious restrictions on the activities of international electoral observers
➢ They have removed ballot-counting regulations that prevent ballot box stuffing
➢ Human rights advocates have noted an alarming rise in murders of political activists which the National Civilian Police refuse to investigate seriously
Despite the assurance of Ambassador Charles Glazer to not intervene in the elections, the U.S. is at this very moment waging a propaganda war in support of ARENA:
➢ U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and the Ambassador have both linked the FMLN to the FARC rebels of Colombia.
➢ Ambassador Glazer also publicly endorsed claims by journalists at a right wing newspaper that an FMLN victory would lead to attacks on press freedom
➢ The International Republican Institute (IRI), funded by the National Endowment for Democracy and headed by John McCain, gave President Saca its “Freedom Award” last fall .
The delegates are currently hard at work producing their fact-finding report, which will be the basis of CISPES’s Defend Real Democracy Campaign. Our campaign will counter U.S. attempts at intervening while supporting the Salvadoran people’s desire for free and fair elections in 2009. Click here to see the Delegation’s press release about statements made by the U.S. ambassador regarding past and present U.S. interference in elections.
As part of the campaign their findings have already sparked much attention in the media (click here to hear some recent radio interviews by CISPES delegates).
Join the campaign, demand that the US respect El Salvador’s political process, and help insure that the will of the Salvadoran people will be heard!
• sign the pledge to oppose US intervention at www.cispes.org/pledge2009
• sign up to receive email updates and alerts here
• Join an electoral observer delegation—click here for details
And help insure that CISPES can carry this campaign through to the end—make an online gift today!
In Solidarity,
Burke Stansbury, CISPES Executive Director