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Proceso 945
March 28, 2001
ISSN 0259-9864
Editorial: Ideological
conversions
Politics: The first year
of the Legislative Assembly
Economy: Reconstruction
and sustainable development
IDEOLOGICAL CONVERSIONS
Whether "ideological conversions" are from the left wing to the right or vice versa, they are always controversial. In many occasions they are controversial because of the personality of the converts, specially if they are harsh characters, shaped in the context of a doctrine to which they are —or seem to be— absolutely identified with. In other occasions, there is a wide controversy regarding the place the convert occupies in a certain organization or political party. If it is about an undeniable leader, it is clear that his conversion into a posture that he once criticized will generate quite a few reproaches among his former comrades, as well as doubts and lack of trust among his new ones. Finally, there will be discussions related to the new ideas of the convert, specially if he defends and proclaims these ideas with more passion than the traditional representatives.
In El Salvador, ideological conversions have been frequent. Previously to the civil war, harsh personalities —giving up traditions and social class compromises— gave dramatic turns into the left wing's options. Some of those characters did not only occupied positions of great importance in the organizations who welcomed them, but they also defended their new ideological and political creed to the last consequences.
During the civil war and the post war period, ideological conversions to the right wing have also been frequent. Not too harsh personalities, but with a considerable amount of power in their former organizations, have trespassed the fence that separated them from their former contenders. Negative critics from their once fellow men have not been scarce, nor the lack of trust from their new ones. Ignoring the first type of critics has been easy, since it has been considered enough to support the accusation towards dogmatism, resistance to change, and ideological renewal.
It has been different when it comes to deal with their new partners´ critics. It has been necessary to demonstrate them that not only the ideological and political creed is accepted unconditionally, but also that their ideas will be defended beyond reason. These aspects explain why the position of the convert from the left to the right wing is even more aggressive than the ones of their traditional defenders. There is a need to convince friends and strangers about the authenticity of their commitment. It does not matter to make unforgivable mistakes, as long as they can be considered the “prodigal son”. Despite of any inconvenience, he has to prove the proverb that says that "there is no worst enemy of the left wing than the convert leftist”.
During the civil war, there was a well known FMLN´s ex - commander who took charge of making life impossible for his former partners, with high costs for him and the FMLN's members who fell into the hands of the armed forces. During the post war —and without any mortal implications as in the past—, this duty has been assumed, in Oxford, England, by Joaquin Villalobos, the ex- commander "Atilio".
It is very much his affair to want to discredit the FMLN as a political alternative, due to —as he says— its "exacerbated criticism" and its historical "distrust". It is the choice of the FMLN to demonstrate to Villalobos —and to those who add to his wishes— that the left wing party can become a governmental option. The problem is that Villalobos, in his quest to discredit the FMLN, he is also stepping over important aspects of the Salvadoran reality. A clear example of this is in his article "Pray, organize and don't stand on anybody's way", published by the newspaper El Diario de Hoy, on March 21, 2001.
Villalobos points out that the "right wing's process of radicalization has diminished", and that is why it has gone further than the one of the left wing —which has allowed the former to "keep the government". Villalobos criticizes the country's prevailing "catharsis". According to Villalobos, this catharsis is reflected in the political polarization, verbal hostility, violent protests, legislative traps, and in the critics to different organizations. Of all those cathartic expressions, Villalobos is worried about two: violent protests and the critics to different organizations.
In his article he refers to the critics made to the police about their failure to fight against delinquency. Villalobos considers that criticizing the police instead of promoting the rejection to delinquency somehow supports, unintentionally, delinquency itself. This is an error of logic, because to criticize the police does not mean to support delinquency. But Villalobos error is not only logical, but also empirical: there are very serious evidences that the crime world has invaded the police force. And many of the critics that have been made to the police have had the purpose to expose that institutional deficit. It is not absurd to suppose that a police force invaded by crime will have serious flaws in its fight against delinquency. Aren't these critics an open rejection to delinquency?
For violent protests, Villalobos has an advice: "be patient and have self-control, do not use your organization for violent protests, it will not do any good to throw stones to the police. After eleven years of civil war, violent protests will not make the country better, it will make it worst". Moral and civic blackmailing? Adult wisdom? You cannot know for sure what has motivated these "advice".
His supposition is a trap: those who protest are violent, and attack the police. It might be so in some cases, but the generalization of Villalobos —his English teachers know it well— is dangerous. For instance, in the February 27 protest, the UMO agents were openly willing to attack the people who were part of the demonstration. The situation would have been different if the police had shown a different attitude.
It is true, violent protests will not make a country better, but worst. State violence and corruption in the police force will also make it worse.
POLITICSTHE FIRST YEAR OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY
The importance of the Legislative Assembly for the functioning of the State of rights is summed up in the political Constitution, which acknowledges the Assembly as the Salvadoran State’s First Organ. A First Organ holds popular representation and has control over the rest of the State powers, in order to administrate the well being of the nation. However, the key question that we must ask is about the relation between this State organization and the political system, regarding its efficiency to respond to the society’s demands, in both participation issues and the resolution of its most common problems.
The Legislative Assembly has been news during the last few weeks. Ever since the last right wing’s offensive, regarding the negotiations for the Nation’s General Budget approval, there was not any relevant information for the political life concerning the legislative work. The celebration of its first anniversary has coincided with the re-emerging of some old issues, such as the absence of a human rights attorney, the denunciation of corruption and the legislative vice of insisting to be present in all social problems, but in those who are of its main concern.
During this first year, many important issues have been put on hold in the Blue Room. It is true that there is a lack of elements to be able to start with an objective evaluation of the State’s First Organ functioning, regarding the amount of laws that have been discussed and approved. It is necessary to ask ourselves about their work in the country’s key problems, which still have not been resolved.
Once and again, forgotten issues and promises demonstrate the coincidence of the deputies, far beyond an absurd polarization and their mutual disqualification.
Regarding to the election of a human rights attorney, the Legislative Assembly keeps showing an attitude that makes you doubt about the deputies appraisal of the Human Rights Defense Office for the country’s democratization. Ever since the former attorney’s dismissal (Peñate Polanco), a year and a half ago, the different political parties, despite their mutual disqualification, have agreed on Peñate´s negligence to make reasonable decisions. The never ending pressures and demands of society to elect an attorney with enough moral solvency have fallen into a bottomless pit. Legislators have not given any signs to understand the human rights issue, despite the social urgency of this subject.
Concerning the legislative irresponsibility in the issues close to the corruption of the State apparatus, the last publications of the local press make evident the poor administration of the legislative travels and the waste of money that this traveling arrangements mean for the State in these moments of post-earthquake crisis. It is true that one cannot deny a priori the importance of the legislators´ trips abroad, but it is necessary to point out the lack of criteria of the administration of such travels, which is understood more like a “legislative tourism” than as a support for the deputies´ work.
Despite the antagonisms among the left and the right wing —which evidently mean an institutional wear and tear for the Legislative Organ—, there is a different vision of the situation when it is analyzed based on the coincidences among the different sectors to compromise and obstruct a true legislative work from a civilian perspective. The political parties represented in the Legislative Assembly should start a re-conversion process, in order to separate their ideological quarrels from the institution’s efficiency. This would enable them to respond to their constitutional responsibilities with the necessary political sensibility.
In this sense, the present dispute for the Congress Directive Board presidency is not the most relevant issue for the majority of Salvadorans. Even if it is an important subject for the internal dynamics of the Assembly, it is more relevant to discuss the inefficiency outside the legislative enclosure. If the political actors keep themselves tangled up in their irrelevant fights, they will not be able to resolve the main problems that obstruct the country’s institutional well functioning. The political actors have to learn to separate politics from the political parties fights, in order to have a positive influence over the society.
In this sense, the FMLN should deliver its
discussion about accepting or not the Legislative Assembly’s presidency.
The key discussion should be about the vices that characterize it.
From this perspective, the need to start a political approach to guarantee
the effectiveness of the legislative work would have to be discussed, instead
of discussing the satisfaction of the political parties particular interests.
In this sense, what could be aggravating about the Legislative Assembly
is the apathy of some deputies when it comes to function as a bridge between
the civilian demands and the State's apparatus.
From this point of view, there can be established
some parameters to evaluate the State's First Organ performance. The question
is not centered as much in how the different parties represented in the
Assembly treat themselves —although this can be an indicator to take
the pulse of the democratic relationship among the political actors. The
question should be whether if the deputies have enough moral and political
solvency to face their political obligations. The legislators cannot talk
about how unfair justice is in this country, if in their own environment
they favor impunity. Or pretend to question the performance of other State
offices, when they are a clear example of inefficiency and squandering.
RECONSTRUCTION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
The challenges for a sustainable development in El Salvador of the 21st. Century, seem much greater than those of the 20th. Not just because of the earthquakes and the disasters of 2001, but also because all the economic optimism that had prevailed during the nineties has lost its foundations: the growing rates have been reducing along the last five years, the commercial and public finance deficits increase every year. The challenges of the post - earthquake period oblige us to incur in a higher external debt and to delay new investments, and the international coffee market suggests that this cultivation might not be a viable alternative in El Salvador.
Without a doubt, it is not enviable scenery, which requires a firm and specific intervention of the State. Obviously, this also requires a development plan that links the government’s different action branches into an economic, social and environmental matter. Until this date, we do not count with a plan that articulates these elements; we only have scattered elements (for the farming, the coffee- growing sector, the reconstruction of infrastructure, unarticulated, and sometimes even incoherent elements.
In this context, it is worth while to consider certain aspects that will probably be reflected in the programs to be implemented in the following years. In the first place, the evaluations of the disaster's economic cost point out that the most affected sectors were housing and infrastructure. In the second place, it is probable that the reconstruction projects are focused, mainly, on the housing and "transportation" sectors.
The effect of a reconstruction program of that kind and magnitude (1,300 million dollar) will depend on how the aid programs are focused. The Salvadoran experience indicates that most of the aid programs end without accomplishing their objectives, and, therefore, end up favoring institutions and sectors that have not been affected by the disasters. Even if it is not about questioning the legitimacy of any managerial or institutional activity, it is necessary to think over the aid programs, because in many cases they are not effective.
In reference to the costs of the disaster, and based on the economic evaluation made by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL, in Spanish), the first noticeable aspect is that the social and infrastructure sectors represent a 38.45% and 29.45%, respectively, of a total of damages. Enough to be considered as the most affected ones, since together they represent 67.9% of the earthquakes' total damage, estimated in 1,603 millions of colones and a 12% of the Domestic Gross Income (PIB, in Spanish). Among the social sectors the housing branch is the most affected one, since it absorbed a 20.9% of the total loss, while the Education and Health branches absorbed a 13.1% and a 4.5%, respectively.
According to these percentages, the reconstruction would be centered in housing and "transportation". These sectors will receive a 44.9% and an 8.3% from the total amount of the investment projects proposed by the CEPAL in its evaluation of the January 13 earthquake costs. All together, housing and transportation will receive close to a 53.2% percent of the investment projects total. The health sector will receive an 18.3% and the farming sector a10.4%. Paradoxically, one of the sectors of considerable transcendence in the present, such as the education sector, is on a sixth place of importance since it will only receive a 3.4% of the total amount.
However it might be, the problem is that this type of "reconstruction" is not after the transformation of the social conditions that have caused the disasters. Such social conditions are the same ones that might explain the obstacles for a sustainable development. The prevalence of economic activities with an unfair distribution of the added value, the extreme poverty of the majority of Salvadorans, and the unsustainable use of the natural resources are the most evident proofs.
However, the housing and road construction programs will not change these conditions. On the contrary, they could even aggravate the prevailing social and economic contradictions. There are two aspects to which we have to pay close attention to: first, the health and housing programs can reinforce a sense of weakness in the victims, and therefore inhibit their personal and organizational development. In second place, the housing and infrastructure projects could have negative environmental effects.
In fact, the government asserts that, at the moment, there have been built 60,000 temporary houses (if they add up the contributions of the different institutions, both governmental and non-governmental). These houses, without a doubt, respond to a need that cannot be postponed any longer. The problem is that in a short term, this policy of legitimate post-disaster help will fall into an assistance dynamic that might block the initiatives for the community’s local development. The arrival of external agents, with previously defined models and ways of working, far from the reality of the communities, do not place any foundations for self local development initiatives. It is not strange that many beneficiaries might think that the well-being depends on the good will of the sponsors, or on the institutions that implement aid programs.
On the other hand, the housing and infrastructure programs can be associated to the process that alters the ecosystems and that can produce risky situations. The temporary housing programs might demand higher rates of natural resources extraction (wood, metals, stone materials, and energy sources). Meanwhile, the road reconstruction programs can also intensify the use of natural resources or the population density in high risk areas (for instance, the alternative road for the occident will be built in the outskirts of the San Salvador Volcano).
It is hard to give a short-term answer to the accurate needs of the country, or to give answers based exclusively on the traditional ways to handle disasters. This leads us to the risk of delaying the necessary reforms that the Salvadoran economic model requires for its sustainability.