One such highly contentious race is for mayor of San Salvador, in which Violeta Menjivar, current mayor and candidate for the FMLN, has a 14 point lead over Norman Quijano, the candidate for the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) party.  This race has already seen several incidences of electoral violence.  In November, campaign workers for ARENA candidate Quijano attacked and injured a group of FMLN members campaigning door-to-door, actions denounced by Salvadoran human rights organizations and El Salvadors Human Rights Ombudsman Oscar Luna. Quijanos campaigners also attacked vendors and shoppers at the Montserrat Market who refused their campaign flyers, turning over a market stall and breaking a vendors cooking supplies. In response to the attacks, Quijano infamously stated that his campaigners are usually armed and should be considered dangerous. 

Terror campaign leads to domestic deployment of Salvadoran Armed Forces

In an attempt to continue instilling fear in the public during this electoral period, the Ministry of Security announced on December 15 that supposed armed groups are undergoing military training in the Salvadoran countryside, an announcement that was disseminated by the Salvadoran media. The key piece of evidence serving as proof of the existence of such groups is a photograph of community members reenacting a military formation with plastic prop guns taken during a social-cultural public event in El Paisnal, an event that commemorates the civil-war death of Comandante Dimas Rodriguez. The presence of members of the FMLN at the community event resulted in the Ministry of Security and President Tony Saca of the ARENA party establishing false connections between the FMLN and these armed groups before the United States FBI, Interpol, the Organization of American States (OAS), and the United Nations (UN).

The Ministers announcement has more serious impacts than just fear: Salvadoran military troops were deployed throughout the region surrounding El Paisnal to monitor these supposed armed groups.  As a response, organizations in El Papaturro, Canton, La Bermuda, Suchitoto, and the department of Cuscatlan to mobilize against and denounce the presence of soldiers in their communities. According to Jose Antonio Rivera, a representative of the El Parpaturro community, the presence of soldiers is viewed as a very delicate provocation and blatant violation of the guidelines in the 1992 Peace Accords that ended the Salvadoran Civil War, guidelines that prohibit armed forces from policing the country.  We want the authorities to stop implicating our communities in this, they have nothing to do with these false accusations, said Rivera.

The FMLN denounced the accusations as a terror campaign and a last ditch effort to defame their party whose presidential candidate Mauricio Funes has a 16 point lead over the ARENA candidate Rodrigo Avila, according to the most recent polls.  We dont want this to be utilized in the current electoral climate because it is a great violation of the political rights of citizens, and is intending to provoke fear and terror so they will choose [ARENA] candidates, said Miguel Montenegro, director of the Human Rights Commission.

At a public event, the Vice-presidential candidate for the leftist party responded to the fear campaign launched against the FMLN Salvador Sanchez Cerén by stating: despite the dirty campaign, people continue to trust in the FMLN to govern.

Government ignores healthcare workers demands

On January 7, health care workers powerfully marched from Benjamin Bloom Childrens Hospital to Rosales Hospital in San Salvador to demand that the government improve working conditions, increase payments, and provide basic equipment to the hospitals.

This is the healthcare workers third action in three months.  In November, a two day public healthcare workers strike shut down outpatient services at Rosales and Benjamin Bloom Childrens Hospitals in San Salvador. While the government agreed to negotiate with the Healthcare Workers Trade Union of El Salvador (SIGEESAL), they have yet to respond to SIGEESALs demands for a greater budget to purchase medicine, food for patients, and pay the $300 year-end bonus (the demand was since lowered to $200) owed to workers.

Frustrated by the governments negligence, the union organized its second action for better working conditions, shutting down outpatient visits at the hospitals again on Wednesday, December 16.  In addition to blocking the hospitals, SIGEESAL has organized the closing of major streets and peaceful demonstrations at the Ministry of Treasury.

However, according to Mario Arevalo, secretary general of SIGEESAL, Our demands still have not been resolved. If we compare the benefits given to the Ministry of Justice, who receive an $800 [year-end] bonus, we should also have a bonus because we attend to 80% of the population, he continued.

In addition to lack of pay, a nurse from the Rosales hospital pointed out the hospitals lack of funding for resources and medicine needed to treat their patients. We dont have materials to work with; as result patients relatives have to buy the medicine that is very expensive, it can be up to $50 dollars.

SIGEESAL has led the struggle for more government investment in public healthcare, as the present network of public hospitals endures a medicine and food shortage, as well as low wages for workers. SIGEESAL has also helped fight government efforts to privatize public healthcare, which would lead to greatly reduced services and higher costs.