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<div class=Section1>
<h1 align=center style='text-align:center;mso-list:none'><b><font size=3
face=Arial><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Anti-mining
activists demand justice, denounce wave of political violence and resurgence of
death squads in Cabañas<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></h1>
<h1 align=center style='margin-left:.9pt;text-align:center;text-indent:0in;
mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1'><![if !supportLists]><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><span
style='mso-list:Ignore'><font size=1 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font></b><![endif]><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></h1>
<h1 align=center style='margin-left:.9pt;text-align:center;text-indent:0in;
mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1'><![if !supportLists]><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><span
style='mso-list:Ignore'><font size=1 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font></b><![endif]><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'>CISPES Update<o:p></o:p></span></font></h1>
<h1 align=center style='margin-left:.9pt;text-align:center;text-indent:0in;
mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1'><![if !supportLists]><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><span
style='mso-list:Ignore'><font size=1 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font></b><![endif]><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'>August 25, 2009<o:p></o:p></span></font></h1>
<h1 align=center style='margin-left:.9pt;text-align:center;text-indent:0in;
mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1'><![if !supportLists]><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><span
style='mso-list:Ignore'><font size=1 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font></b><![endif]><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><img width=331
height=233 id="_x0000_i1025" src="cid:image004.jpg@01CA25A0.85073E80"><o:p></o:p></span></font></h1>
<h1 style='margin-left:.9pt;text-indent:0in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1'><![if !supportLists]><b><font
size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'><span
style='mso-list:Ignore'><font size=1 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font></b><![endif]><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></h1>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><i><font size=2
face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-style:italic'>Community
groups organized marches and blockades to demand an investigation into the
assassination of Marcelo Rivera<o:p></o:p></span></font></i></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><i><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial;font-style:italic'>Also in this update:<o:p></o:p></span></font></i></p>
<h1 style='mso-list:none'><a name="_FMLN_deputies_present"></a><b><font size=2
face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><a
href="#hatecrime">FMLN deputies present hate crime law in the Legislative
Assembly</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></b></h1>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><a href="#soto">Gilberto Soto murder case to be reopened by
Supreme Court; Attorney General says he will not expand the investigation</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<h1 style='mso-list:none'><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><a href="#students">Students take
the streets to commemorate 1975 University massacre</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></b></h1>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><a href="#firings">Municipal workers block street in protest
of mass firings</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>On Thursday, August 20, anti-mining organizations, community
groups in the department of Cabañas, and other sectors of the Salvadoran social
movement carried out coordinated actions protesting the surge of political
violence in Cabañas and the failure of the National Civilian Police (PNC) and
Attorney General to adequately investigate and prosecute these crimes. Among
the actions, which were coordinated by the Marcelo Rivera Committee for Truth
and Justice, were a demonstration in front of the Office of the Attorney
General and a blockade of the highway from Santa Tecla to <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">San Salvador</st1:place></st1:City>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>The committee takes its name from assassinated community
activist Marcelo Rivera, whose body was found on July 1 in a well in <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">San Isidro</st1:place></st1:City>, Cabañas, with
signs of torture. <i><span style='font-style:italic'>Read more about the
Marcelo Rivera murder case <a
href="http://www.elsalvadorsolidarity.org/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=233&Itemid=65">here</a>
or watch a video <a href="http://www.jamiemoffett.com/">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Marcelo Rivera’s murder is only part of a wave of
political violence and threats against anti-mining activists and journalists in
Cabañas:<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:0in;text-indent:0in;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2'><![if !supportLists]><font
size=2 face=Symbol><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Symbol'><span
style='mso-list:Ignore'>·<font size=1 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font><![endif]><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'>On Friday, August 7, Ramiro Rivera
(no relation to Marcelo) was shot eight times, narrowly surviving the attack.
As President of the Community Development Association (ADESCO) of Nueva
Trinidad, Cabañas, Ramiro Rivera had been a leader of opposition to
Canadian-based company <st1:place w:st="on">Pacific Rim</st1:place>’s
mining operations in the region and had organized road blockades to prevent
transport of the company’s exploratory equipment. <st1:place w:st="on">Pacific
Rim</st1:place> is currently suing the Salvadoran government for $70 million
under CAFTA’s investor protection clauses for not providing mining
permits. <i><span style='font-style:italic'>Read more about the <st1:place
w:st="on">Pacific Rim</st1:place> case <a
href="http://upsidedownworld.org/main/content/view/2049/74/">here</a> and <a
href="http://upsidedownworld.org/main/content/view/1637/74/">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:0in;text-indent:0in;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2'><![if !supportLists]><font
size=2 face=Symbol><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Symbol'><span
style='mso-list:Ignore'>·<font size=1 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font><![endif]><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Journalists from community radio
station Radio <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Victoria</st1:place></st1:State>
in Cabañas continue to receive death threats as a result of their efforts to
report on the dangers of the proposed mining projects. Guillermo Ramos,
president of the board of directors of the Association of Participatory Radios
and Programs of El Salvador (ARPAS), described the investigation of the threats
as “stagnant” and called on the government and corresponding
authorities to “capture and bring to justice the material and
intellectual authors of these actions [the threats].” <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:0in;text-indent:0in;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo2'><![if !supportLists]><font
size=2 face=Symbol><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Symbol'><span
style='mso-list:Ignore'>·<font size=1 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font><![endif]><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'>On July 29<sup>th</sup>, Father Luis
Quintanilla escaped a kidnapping attempt by jumping into a ravine after he was
pulled out of his car by armed, masked men while driving in Cabañas. The priest
is a leader in the anti-mining movement and had been receiving death threats
leading up to the attack.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>The organizations participating in the August 20<sup>th</sup>
actions condemned the surge of violence and threats against anti-mining
activists in Cabañas, and called for an exhaustive investigation by the PNC and
Attorney General’s office. Activists denounced the decision to
investigate as common crimes what they see as a politically motivated terror
campaign.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'> “We want to know who is behind all of
this…and we have serious suspicions that it has been the Pacific Rim
mining company that is financing these activities to terrorize those who are
opposed [to mining],” said Marcelo’s brother Miguel Rivera.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>A declaration released by the Foundation for the Study of
the Application of Law (FESPAD) states, “Cabañas is experiencing the
resurgence of hate, intolerance, and a culture of death by the death squads
that have reorganized to attack anyone who is fighting in favor of life.”
<i><span style='font-style:italic'>Click <a
href="http://www.cispes.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=620&Itemid=1">here</a>
to take Action to demand a real investigation into these politically-motivated
acts of violence.<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<h1 style='mso-list:none'><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></b></h1>
<h1 style='mso-list:none'><a name=hatecrime></a><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'>FMLN deputies present hate crime law
in the Legislative Assembly<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></h1>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>In response to recent threats and political violence against
journalists and activists, legislative deputies of the Farabundo Martí National
Liberation Front (FMLN) faction in the Legislative Assembly have presented a
reform to the penal code that would define and require tougher punishments for
“crimes of intolerance.” These crimes are defined as having
motivations of racial, ethnic, gender-based, or homophobic hate, and, according
to FMLN Deputy Margarita Velado, would include “crimes resulting from or
as a consequence of the victim's work in the area of protection of human
rights, defense of the environment and the promotion of democracy and of human
development.”<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>“Where a cadre of people from a conservative power are
connected with supposed benefits from mining, they want to do away with the
opposition,” Velado said when introducing the FMLN's legislation.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial;font-weight:bold'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><a name=soto></a><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:bold'>Gilberto Soto
murder case to be reopened by Supreme Court; Attorney General says he will not
expand the investigation<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><font
size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'>El
Salvador</span></font></st1:place></st1:country-region><font size=2
face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'>’s Supreme
Court of Justice (CSJ) ordered a new trial in the case of the murder of
Salvadoran-American unionist Gilberto Soto. Soto, a representative of the
International Brotherhood of Teamsters from <st1:State w:st="on">New Jersey</st1:State>,
was murdered on November 5, 2004, outside a relative’s home in the
department of Usulután while in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">El
Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region> on union business. Initial
investigations concluded that his mother-in-law had paid gang-members $2,000 to
murder Soto, motivated by internal family disputes.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>At the time of the trial, the Teamsters, several other
unions, and <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">El Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s
Human Rights Ombudsperson criticized the Salvadoran Attorney General and PNC
for not investigating motives related to Soto’s work as a union
organizer. During his visit, he had met several times with Central American
freight transport and port workers to explore the possibility of forming a
union. The final ruling found one of the suspected hired assassins guilty, but
absolved Soto’s mother-in-law of the intellectual-author charges.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Two months ago, U.S. Congressman James P. McGovern (D-MA)
sent a letter to President Mauricio Funes asking that Soto’s murder case
be reopened. McGovern cited new evidence of the involvement of the Perrones
gang in Soto’s murder. The Perrones are a consortium of businesspeople in
the eastern region of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">El
Salvador</st1:place></st1:country-region> that have previously been charged
with drug trafficking, money laundering, and tax evasion. Recent investigations
carried out by the newly installed General Inspector of the PNC found evidence
of collusion between PNC officials and the Perrones gang.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>The CSJ’s decision to reopen the case hinges on the
assertion that the testimony used to absolve Soto’s mother-in-law of
guilt should not have been admitted into the court. The new trial will reopen
charges against Soto’s mother-in-law and against a second suspected hired
assassin, Santos Sanchez Alaya, who was also absolved in the original trial.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>The Office of the Attorney General has no plans at this time
to explore motives other than the original internal family dispute theory, or
investigate the link between the Perrones gang and the murder. <i><span
style='font-style:italic'>De facto</span></i> Attorney General Ástor Escalante
said he would take Rep. McGovern’s letter under advisement, but added,
“What I cannot say, because it would be irresponsible on my part, is that
I am going to investigate the potential link between this case and that criminal
structure (the Perrones gang).”<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Escalante, the former Adjunct Attorney General, usurped the
position of Attorney General on April 19 of this year when the former Attorney
General’s term expired amidst a legislative deadlock on naming his
successor. The narrowly divided Legislative Assembly has still been unable to
find consensus among the different party factions. The Nationalist Republican
Alliance (ARENA) continues to support Escalante staying in the position, while
the FMLN rejects this option, noting Escalante’s strong ties to ARENA and
arguing that he will continue the former Attorney General's policies of
impunity for politically-motivated crimes.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<h1 style='mso-list:none'><a name=students></a><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'>Students take the streets to
commemorate 1975 University massacre<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></h1>
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src="cid:image001.jpg@01CA25A0.D98493E0" align=right hspace=12 v:shapes="_x0000_s1026"><![endif]><font
size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial'>On July 30,
hundreds of students commemorated the 34<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the 1975
student massacre with a march, street theater, and vigil. On July 30<sup>th</sup>,
1975, students at the <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">University</st1:PlaceType> of <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">El Salvador</st1:PlaceName> peacefully marched in protest of the
repressive conditions of the dictatorship of Colonel Arturo Armando Molina and
the military occupation of the university's <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Santa Ana</st1:place></st1:City> campus. Army and police forces,
following orders of the military regime, opened fire on the march and killed 30
students, leaving an estimated hundred more wounded.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>This year’s march was both an act of commemoration and
an opportunity to protest current events that are reminiscent of the past,
particularly the recent military coup in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Brightly colored banners
displayed the faces of the martyrs and carried slogans including “30
reasons to not forget” and “We demand justice now!” A 12-foot
tall gorilla statue with the face of Roberto Michelletti, leader of the coup
government in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
was burned at the end of the march, along with replicas of tanks and
helicopters that represented military repression of the past and present.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>“Commemorating this date is a way for us to carry on
the legacy of the organized student movements of the '70s and '80s,”
explained Sonia Dubón, coordinator of the Roque Dalton University Front (FURD).
“Only through historical memory will the people become empowered to
organize themselves and demand a dignified life.”<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><a name=firings></a><b><font size=2 face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;font-weight:bold'>Municipal workers
block street in protest of mass firings<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>On Tuesday, August 18, and Thursday, August 20, members of
the Municipal Workers Association (ATRAM) and the Association of Municipal
Professionals and Technicians (APTM) blocked a section of the Avenue Juan Pablo
II in front of the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Salvador</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">City Hall</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>, denouncing a
wave of firings carried out by the new Mayor of San Salvador, Norman Quijano.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Before Quijano’s May 1<sup>st</sup> inauguration as
mayor, he had promised that municipal offices would not be politically purged
and that he would not fire employees who were effectively carrying out their jobs.
However, Quijano fired 50 workers on August 13, and another 25 on August 17,
bringing the total number of workers fired since he took office to over 100.
Yaneth Mora, one of the fired workers who participated in the road block, had
worked for the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceType w:st="on">municipality</st1:PlaceType>
of <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Salvador</st1:PlaceName></st1:place> for nine
years in various positions. He was fired without severance pay on August 13<sup>th</sup>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>According to René Saravia, Secretary of ATRAM, a law
approved in 2005 protected municipal workers that do not hold positions of
political confidence during changes in administration. But recent reforms
passed by ARENA and its right-wing allies in the Legislative Assembly allow for
arbitrary application of that law. “A <st1:place w:st="on">CAM</st1:place>
[security] agent is not in a position of political confidence; he or she is one
more worker. There are others in similar positions that are being fired,”
Saravia explained. According to critics, Quijano’s office and other
right-wing mayors' offices throughout the country are choosing to cut jobs as a
means of confronting the current economic crisis faced by all municipalities
and the central government. These job cuts, however, are following a pattern of
political purging, with FMLN supporters being dismissed from their posts
regardless of their effectiveness in performing their professional functions.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Juan José Barahona, President of ATRAM, promised more
actions similar to the road-block if the firings are not stopped and if those
fired are not reinstated to their positions.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
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