<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">
<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type"
content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11 (filtered medium)">
<o:SmartTagType
namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="State">
<o:SmartTagType
namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"><o:SmartTagType
namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="country-region"> <o:SmartTagType
namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"><!--[if !mso]>
<style>
st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) }
</style>
<![endif]-->
<style>
<!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:Wingdings;
panose-1:5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:Times;
panose-1:2 2 6 3 5 4 5 2 3 4;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Times;}
h1
{margin-top:0in;
margin-right:0in;
margin-bottom:0in;
margin-left:.3in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-indent:-.3in;
page-break-after:avoid;
mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Times;}
p.MsoBodyText, li.MsoBodyText, div.MsoBodyText
{margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Times;
font-weight:bold;}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{color:blue;
text-decoration:underline;}
a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{color:purple;
text-decoration:underline;}
span.EmailStyle17
{mso-style-type:personal-compose;
font-family:Arial;
color:windowtext;}
@page Section1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.25in 27.0pt 1.25in;}
div.Section1
{page:Section1;
mso-footnote-position:beneath-text;}
/* List Definitions */
@list l0
{mso-list-id:1;
mso-list-template-ids:1;}
@list l0:level1
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:.3in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:.3in;
text-indent:-.3in;}
@list l0:level2
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:.4in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:.4in;
text-indent:-.4in;}
@list l0:level3
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:.5in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:.5in;
text-indent:-.5in;}
@list l0:level4
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:.6in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:.6in;
text-indent:-.6in;}
@list l0:level5
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:.7in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:.7in;
text-indent:-.7in;}
@list l0:level6
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:.8in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:.8in;
text-indent:-.8in;}
@list l0:level7
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:.9in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:.9in;
text-indent:-.9in;}
@list l0:level8
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:1.0in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:1.0in;
text-indent:-1.0in;}
@list l0:level9
{mso-level-number-format:none;
mso-level-text:"";
mso-level-tab-stop:1.1in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
margin-left:1.1in;
text-indent:-1.1in;}
@list l1
{mso-list-id:1523742912;
mso-list-type:hybrid;
mso-list-template-ids:1730575036 67698689 67698691 67698693 67698689 67698691 67698693 67698689 67698691 67698693;}
@list l1:level1
{mso-level-number-format:bullet;
mso-level-text:\F0B7;
mso-level-tab-stop:.5in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
text-indent:-.25in;
font-family:Symbol;}
ol
{margin-bottom:0in;}
ul
{margin-bottom:0in;}
-->
</style></o:SmartTagType></o:SmartTagType></o:SmartTagType></o:SmartTagType>
</head>
<body bgcolor="#ffffff" text="#000000">
<div align="center"><font face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="5"><span
style="font-size: 16pt;">President Saca offers $500 million to
private and foreign banks,<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></font>
</div>
<div class="Section1">
<div align="center">
</div>
<p class="MsoBodyText" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><i><small><font
face="Times New Roman"><small><b><font size="5"><small><small><span
style="font-size: 16pt;">FMLN demands that the money benefit
small businesses and the agriculture industry</span></small></small></font></b></small></font></small></i></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><font
face="Times New Roman">December 4, 2008</font><font color="blue"
face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: blue;"><a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="#Salvadorans_Living_Abroad_Demand_the"><img
alt="mujeres" src="cid:part1.01050106.01020407@cispes.org"
align="right" border="0" height="228" width="270"></a></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText"><font face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="5"><span
style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></b></font><font
color="blue" face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: blue;"></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText"><font face="Times New Roman"><span
style="font-weight: normal;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font><font
color="blue" face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: blue;"></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText"><font face="Times New Roman"><b><i><font
color="black" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-style: italic;">Also in
this update:</span></font></i></b></font><font color="black"
face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><font
face="Times New Roman"><b><font color="blue" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Symbol; color: blue; font-weight: normal;"><span
style="">·<font size="1"><span
style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></font></span></span></font></b></font><!--[endif]--><font
color="blue" face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: blue;"><a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="#Funes_to_Meet_with_Leaders_of_Financial_">Mauricio
Funes Travels to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">U.S.</st1:country-region></st1:place>
to Meet with Leaders of
Financial Organizations and the Organization of American States</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><font
face="Times New Roman"><b><font color="blue" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Symbol; color: blue; font-weight: normal;"><span
style="">·<font size="1"><span
style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></font></span></span></font></b></font><!--[endif]--><font
color="blue" face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: blue;"><a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="#Funes_of_El_Salvador">Funes and Sánchez
Cerén Promise to Govern
with Policies that
will Benefit the Women of El Salvador</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><font
face="Times New Roman"><b><font color="blue" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Symbol; color: blue; font-weight: normal;"><span
style="">·<font size="1"><span
style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></font></span></span></font></b></font><!--[endif]--><font
color="blue" face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: blue;"><a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="#Salvadorans_Living_Abroad_Demand_the">Salvadorans
Living Abroad
Demand the Right to Vote</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></b></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">In
mid-November, Salvadoran President Tony Saca, following in the
footsteps of his
mentor and ally George W. Bush, requested a $500 million loan from the
Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to inject liquidity into private
and
foreign banks. Citing <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">El Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region>'s Constitution,
the opposition FMLN
party (Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front) maintains that the
loan must
be approved by the Legislative Assembly. The Constitution of El
Salvador
requires all sovereign debt to pass a legislative debate and be
approved by a
two-thirds vote in the Assembly.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">President
Saca and his ARENA party (Nationalist Republican Alliance) contend that
injecting money into the private and foreign banks will give Salvadoran
businesses and industries access to loans. The FMLN wants conditions to
apply
to the IDB loan to make sure the money stays within the country and
goes to small-
and medium-sized businesses, as well as the agricultural sector. Many
international and domestic economists have agreed with the FMLN’s
proposal, advising Saca that giving the money to private and foreign
banks
would be a mistake. Renowned economist Juan Héctor Vidal explained,
“In
other circumstances these $500 million would be given through other
intermediaries, but I would not give resources to the banks simply to
palliate
them; it is truly sad.”<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">For
many in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">El Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
the thought of taking on public debt to give money away to private and
primarily foreign banks seems completely illogical as lay-offs and
unemployment
surge throughout the country. The Association of Cooperative Banks and
Savings
and Credit Unions of El Salvador has sent an open letter to President
Saca,
imploring that a large percentage of the $500 million loan be directed
to its
member institutions. This would ensure that the money stays within the
country
and benefits the association’s “thousands of clients that form part
of the productive sector of micro, small, and medium businesses” in <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">El Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
instead of simply giving more money to an already privileged business
sector.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<h1><a moz-do-not-send="true"
name="Funes_to_Meet_with_Leaders_of_Financial_"></a><font
face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Mauricio
Funes
Travels to the <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">U.S.</st1:place></st1:country-region>
to Meet with Leaders of Financial Organizations and the Organization of
American
States<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></font></h1>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></b></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">FMLN
presidential candidate Mauricio Funes traveled to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City
w:st="on">Washington</st1:City>, <st1:State w:st="on">D.C.</st1:State></st1:place>,
in late November to meet with leaders of the International Monetary
Fund and
Inter-American Development Bank, as well as leaders of the Organization
of
American States (OAS). The purpose of meeting with the financial
leaders was
to let them know “first-hand the situation of our country and our
vision
of the country that we will construct after June of next year.”<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">The
meeting with José Miguel Insulza, Secretary General of the OAS, was
intended to
discuss Funes' and the Salvadoran people’s concern about potential
fraud
in the coming elections, to be held in January and March of 2009.
Polls
currently show that a majority of the Salvadoran population is not
confident in
the integrity of the electoral process. The OAS previously issued a
long list
of suggestions to make the Salvadoran electoral process fair and
transparent,
but very few of these have been implemented. One of the
recommendations was to
revise the electoral registry—due to a high number of irregularities
and
errors in the list of voters—and to open the registry to scrutiny by
all
parties. Presently, only one FMLN official has been allowed to view
the
registry. Despite the fact that this recommendation has not been
implemented,
ARENA has falsely asserted that the OAS has approved the electoral
registry. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">Since
Funes’ meeting with Insulza, the OAS has created a new mission of 80
observers that arrived in the country at the end of November to review
and
monitor El <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Salvador</st1:place></st1:City>’s
electoral process. The right-wing dominated Supreme Electoral Tribunal
(TSE)
has been heavily criticized by the FMLN as well as the OAS for
implementing a
series of electoral reforms that allow for the possibility of fraud and
irregularities in the 2009 legislative, municipal, and presidential
elections.
Recent polling gives Funes a 14-point lead over ARENA presidential
candidate
Rodrigo Ávila, which has lead some observers to worry that ARENA may
exploit
the irregularities cited by the OAS to perpetrate fraud in an effort to
hold
onto power.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<h1><a moz-do-not-send="true" name="Funes_of_El_Salvador"></a><font
face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Funes
and Sánchez Cerén Promise to Govern with Policies that will Benefit the
Women
of El Salvador<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></font></h1>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></b></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">In a
meeting with hundreds of women from <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">San Salvador</st1:place></st1:City> on Sunday, November 23,
FMLN presidential
candidate Mauricio Funes and vice-presidential candidate Salvador
Sánchez Cerén
promised to promote policies that will resolve the problems faced by
Salvadoran
women. “We can’t conceive a democratic exercise if we don’t
have a vision of gender,” declared Funes.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">The
FMLN has taken many steps to promote the participation of women in the
political process, including a Women’s Secretariat that concerns itself
with this sole purpose. 40% of the FMLN legislative candidates are
women and
30% of FMLN governed municipalities have women mayors. During the
meeting,
Sánchez Cerén pointed out that many of the women’s proposals already
make
up a part of the FMLN ticket's governing platform. These plans include
improving the quality of jobs for women, closing the pay gap between
men and
women, recognizing domestic work, and providing women with access to
healthcare, education, credit, and a dignified life.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">The
proposals of the women represented at the meeting pointed out that in
the last
20 years of ARENA governance; there has been growth in
“marginalization,
poverty, and exclusion, which has its origin in machismo and the
concentration
of power in the hands of few.” This meeting continues Funes' and
Sánchez
Cerén’s series of visits with diverse sectors of society as they
develop
a plan for governing that is inclusive and will serve the majority of
Salvadorans.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<h1 style="margin-left: 0in; text-indent: 0in;"><a
moz-do-not-send="true" name="Salvadorans_Living_Abroad_Demand_the"></a><font
face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Salvadorans
Living Abroad Demand the
Right to Vote<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></font></h1>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman"><b><font size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></b></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">The
demand for the right to vote was a central theme of the 6<sup>th</sup>
International Convention of Salvadorans in the World, which took place
in <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">San Salvador</st1:place></st1:City>
the third
week of November. There is currently no mechanism to allow the 2.5
million
Salvadorans who live outside of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">El Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region> to vote.
Convention attendees
gathered in protest at the Monumento a la Constitución to call for
President
Tony Saca to allow them their constitutional right to vote in elections
in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">El Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">Salvador
Sanabria, executive director of the organization El Rescate in <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Los Angeles</st1:place></st1:City>,
pointed out the large role
Salvadorans living abroad play in keeping the Salvadoran economy
afloat.
“It’s impossible that, after sending more than $3.6 billion in
family remittances annually, the Salvadoran state denies the right to
exercise
suffrage and the ability to decide the destiny and future of this
nation,” said Sanabria at the demonstration.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><o:p> </o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">The
Supreme Electoral Tribunal’s plan to install polling places in <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">San Salvador</st1:place></st1:City> for
citizens
living abroad is seen as pure show by many. The demand for emigrant’s
suffrage is consistently denied by ARENA, as it is generally understood
that
Salvadorans general emigrate due to the deterioration of their economic
situation in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">El
Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
and would most likely vote for a change in government.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
</body>
</html>