Another Election Cycle!

November 5th was a great day in the United States for multiple reasons, one of them being that it brought an end to the barrage of political ads and the domination of political news. While I enjoy politics quite a bit, I have to admit: I enjoyed the breather. Yet, I wondered, what will I do without so much politics?

And then came El Salvador. Rather, I came to El Salvador -- and I'm in the middle of yet another high political season. As a presidential republic, El Salvador elects both a parliament (upcoming on Jan. 18) and a president (upcoming on Mar. 15); the president is both the executive of government and the head of state, much like in the United States.

The biggest difference so far has to do with the number of political parties. There are so many! Two major parties have dominated Salvadoran politics since the Peace Accords in 1992, but that doesn't seem to deter another three parties from plastering the country with their colors.

So far, I have seen murals, paintings, flags, flyers, stickers, hats, t-shirts, signs, billboards, and sidewalk art for the ARENA, FMLN, PCN, PDC and FDR parties.

ARENA, or the Alianza Republicana Nacionalista (Nationalist Republican Alliance) has been the party in power of the executive branch since the 1992, and usually carries great influence in numbers in the legislative. It is considered to be right-wing and was very close to the military during the Civil War.

FMLN is a political party developed out of the civil war's guerilla movement. Named after a left-wing leader, the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (Frente Farabundo Martí para la Liberación Nacionalz), the party has maintained itself as the biggest opposition to ARENA. Although it has not held power in the executive branch, it has had considerable numbers in the legislative branch and in local districts.

Other parties also find their own space on the right-left spectrum, most of which I am still learning in terms of Salvaoran politics. As my theme for the course, I'm sure figuring out these party differences and which segements of the population they appeal to will be a very interesting adventure. In the meantime, I'm still experiencing a barrage of political ads!

They are on seemingly every highway, corner, intersection and brick wall. What's even more interesting is the blatant vandalism of party advertisements; it has not been unusual to see, for example, black "x" marks through FMLN signs, stencils of a skull and crossbones over ARENA paint, or one party's colors painted over another's artwork.

Below is my Picasa web album dedicated to politics and art in El Salvador. So far, it contains only a handful of the political artwork I have seen through our travels. More photos will come soon, along with more information as I travel and learn!

In the meantime, our group participated in a a political-like march today through the streets of San Salvador. We were invited by Circulo Solidario, the organization we are working with over the next month, to join them in a march against domestic violence against women. We are only a handful of people in the thousands that showed up and took to the streets. It was a peaceful march that ended at the Supreme Court and Legislative buildings. While the march was not affiliated with any particular party, supporters of all stripes were present -- and we ended up demonstrating outside of two important locations for Salvadoran government. Politics always comes with an adventure...

Hasta luego (Until later),

-MJ

Politics and Art in El Salvador