|
El Salvador is a Central American country. Bathed by the
Pacific Ocean in the south, it borders Guatemala in the
northwest and Honduras in the north and east. It has an
area of 21 040 km2. The most important
cities are San Salvador, the capital, with a population
of 513,400 inhabitants (2004), Soyapango (381,000
inhabitants), Mejicanos (170,400 inhabitants), Santa Ana
(169,900 inhabitants) and San Miguel ( 146 700
inhab.). In the mountain ranges closest to the sea,
there are volcanoes, some of which are active. The
climate is tropical, but cool in the highlands. In the
lowlands, next to the Pacific, it is quite hot and
humid. The rainy season is between May and October.
Economy
El Salvador has an economy that is based on trade,
industry and agriculture. Most of the imported products
come from the USA, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela and
are fuels, chemicals, transport equipment, machinery,
metal products and food. Exports, mainly to the USA,
Guatemala and Germany, include coffee, sugar,
pharmaceuticals and cartons. The country is the world's
largest producer of balsamic gum, used in medicines and
perfumes. Even so, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is
among the lowest in all of Central America. The dominant
agricultural crops are coffee, sugar cane, beans, corn,
rice, tobacco, cotton, orange and banana. Food, drinks,
textiles are produced in industry
Environmental indicator: the value of carbon dioxide
emissions, per capita, (metric tons, 1999) is 0.9.
Population
The population is 6 822 378 inhabitants (est. 2006),
which corresponds to a population density of 318.67
inhab./km2. The birth and death rates are
respectively 26.61% and 5.78%. Average life expectancy
is 71.49 years. The value of the Human Development Index
(HDI) is 0.719 and the value of the Gender-adjusted
Development Index (IDG) is 0.707 (2001). It is estimated
that, in 2025, the population will be 9 108 000
inhabitants. The main ethnic groups are mestizo (89%),
India (10%) and white (1%). The religion with the
greatest expression is Catholic. The official language
is Castilian.
History
El Salvador became independent in 1821 and, since that
date, internal struggles and military dictatorships have
become commonplace in the territory. But the clashes
have also widened externally. Having been defeated at a
soccer game in 1969, El Salvador tried to occupy
Honduras, which led to a war between the two countries
that lasted only five days. In 1976, there were clashes
on the border between the two armies.
The power struggles in El Salvador were at the origin of
the civil war that caused thousands of deaths and
refugees between 1979 and 1992. In the early 1980s,
successive governments were accused of not respecting
human rights, of practicing torture, killing political
activists and executing people without trial. At the
time, the government was threatened by leftist
guerrillas. The United States, fearing the spread of
communism to the north, sent economic and military aid
to the territory. In 1982 Roberto d'Aubuisson, from the
extreme right, led the government, but only remained in
power for two years. In 1983 a new Constitution was
adopted.
Between 1982 and 1984, government brutality led American
public opinion to criticize US support for the
Government of El Salvador. In 1984 the country had its
first democratic elections and the more moderate
Christian Democratic leader, José Napoleón Duarte, took
power. In order for the democratic process to be truly
legitimized, the Government invited the guerrillas to
negotiate and run for election. The invitation was not
accepted and the fighting continued. In 1992 an
agreement brought an end to the civil war and the
beginning of a period favorable to free legislative
elections. Subsequently, the president of the country
began to govern with a legislative assembly.
|
