Bicentennial celebration in El Salvador

Ryna Avila. Architect and teacher of local development
San Salvador


El Salvador is the smallest country in Central America, situated at a point where the Pacific just washes the shores. It consists of barely 21,000 km 2 of land but is one of the most densely populated countries in the Americas; in 2011 there were almost 6 million inhabitants. The story of who we are today began 200 years ago on 5th November 1811, when we became an independent country and thus began the creation of a new identity.

To delve into the history of those beginnings of identity through the act of independence helps us to understand what we are today as Salvadoran society, both the positives and negatives. We have 200 years of socially constructed history and it has affected in various ways that which is El Salvador in 2011. It is an inherited history that has consequences for the present.

In the opening ceremony of the bicentennial year, held on February 25, 2011, President of the Republic of El Salvador, Mauricio Funes, began his public address with two key questions: What are we? And what do we want for our children?  In his answer he gave an explanation of some of the effects that these questions have had since 1811. He spoke about the impediments that the development of our nation has experienced, "the exclusion of the majority and a deep political and social division."

El Salvador has a long history of conflict and power struggles during which the population (the vast majority) have not historically been the priority. This has been reflected over the last 200 years during which there have been several processes of conflict; from the almost total extermination of the indigenous population (in the massacre of 1932) to the processes of social exclusion perpetuated by the system that don’t give the population access to the basic necessities to which they are entitled. These are issues that have caused damage but at the same time have constructed the nation as it is today.

Amongst the many actors who have influenced the process of the construction of El Salvador and have tried to intervene to reverse these logics of inequality there is one person who deserves to be named, whilst recognising that in doing so we are omitting many other distinguished men and women who have been involved in this process. The figure is Monsignor Oscar Arnulfo Romero who was assassinated on March 24th 1980 with the aim of silencing the "voice of the voiceless". No one knew that his death would provoke an uprising of the Salvadorian people. His words continue to be relevant today and are part of the Salvadorian history that inspires continuation by those who participate to transform reality to the dream of well being for all.

In 1992, following several years of armed conflict, there was a peaceful respite, a pause of breath, symbolised in the signing of the Peace Accords. The signing represented an act of desire to change the course of history. That act was a highlight that is remembered with great enthusiasm, despite the subsequent domestic problems of crime that are partly due to the neglect of the basic needs of the majority of the population.

The country has had successes in between these changes. The establishment of a democracy continuously working towards more transparency, where one can begin to see the alternation of powers and the peoples respect for the vote in choosing their leaders. These are outstanding political forces when one compares them to the preceding history. It is a history that cannot be changed but if we know it and understand it, we are capable of transforming it with the inspiration of having a context of quality of life for all the citizens of the nation.

"What country do we want? And what can each person do to achieve it? For me it is clear, to work for unity of the people," says Mauricio Funes at the end of his speech, encouraging people to have a dream, not to speak of lost opportunities but to use the bicentennial celebration as a reason to live a present that builds a better future through national unity and the inclusion of the majority in the search for universal well-being.

There is a responsibility for this tiny country. To learn from the past to understand its weaknesses and to fight for a future that allows citizens to have a better life whilst at the same time strengthening national identity. It is worth reinforcing this on this anniversary of 200 years of the cry for independence.