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<div align="right">August 2008<br>
<br>
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Dear
Friends,<br>
<br>
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! <b><a
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=296">Click
here
to support
CISPES NOW</a></b> and help us build solidarity for the Salvadoran
struggle at this crucial moment.<br>
<br>
The delegation’s specific findings will soon be revealed in an
extensive report; for now, you can go here to take the <a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://www.cispes.org/pledge2009">People’s
Pledge
for free and fair elections in El Salvador!</a><br>
<br>
As CISPES solidarity prepares for 2009, a few things we know for
certain:<br>
<a href="http://www.cispes.org/pledge2009"><img
alt="funes convention" src="cid:part3.06020404.00090504@cispes.org"
align="right" border="0" height="167" width="206"></a><br>
<b>El Salvador is ripe for change: </b><br>
➢ 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 <i>(see photo
of
Funes at the convention on August 17.)</i><br>
➢ the population as a whole is fed up with the right-wing ARENA
party’s corporate-oriented economic program<br>
➢ recent <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=404&Itemid=28">polls
show the FMLN ticket ahead </a>by anywhere from 7 to
21 points!<br>
<br>
<b>Meanwhile ARENA is using varied program of dirty tactics
in a desperate effort to hold onto power:</b><br>
➢ ARENA has refused to implement recommendations of the Organization
of American States to reform the electoral process<br>
➢ They have threatened <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=397&Itemid=28">serious
restrictions on the activities of
international electoral observers</a> <br>
➢ They have removed ballot-counting regulations that prevent ballot
box stuffing<br>
➢ <a
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=439&Itemid=28">Human
rights advocates have noted an alarming rise in murders of
political activists</a> which the National Civilian Police refuse to
investigate seriously<br>
<b><br>
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:</b><br>
➢ U.S. Deputy Secretary of State <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=412&Itemid=28">John
Negroponte and the Ambassador
have both linked the FMLN to the FARC rebels of Colombia.</a><br>
➢ Ambassador Glazer also publicly endorsed claims by journalists at
a right wing newspaper that an FMLN victory would lead to attacks on
press freedom<br>
➢ The International Republican Institute (IRI), funded by the
National Endowment for Democracy and headed by John McCain, <a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=324&Itemid=28">gave
President Saca its “Freedom Award” last fall .</a><br>
<br>
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. <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=416&Itemid=29">Click
here to see the Delegation’s press release about statements made by the
U.S. ambassador </a>regarding past and present U.S. interference in
elections.<br>
<br>
As part of the campaign their findings have already sparked much
attention in the media (<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=63&Itemid=91">click
here to hear some recent radio interviews by CISPES delegates</a>).<br>
<b><br>
<i>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!</i></b><br>
• sign the pledge to oppose US intervention at <a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://www.cispes.org/pledge2009">www.cispes.org/pledge2009</a><br>
• sign up to receive email updates and alerts <a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://lists.people-link.net/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/cispes-ern">here</a><br>
• Join an electoral observer delegation—<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=18&Itemid=52">click
here for details</a><br>
<br>
And help insure that CISPES can carry this campaign through to the
end—<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=296">make
an online gift today!</a><br>
<br>
In Solidarity, <br>
<br>
<br>
Burke Stansbury, CISPES Executive Director<br>
<br>
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