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Guns and Violence in the El Salvador Peace Negotiations Cate Buchanan & Joaquín Chávez ABOUT the HD CENTRE

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Guns and Violence in the El Salvador Peace Negotiations Cate Buchanan & Joaquín Chávez ABOUT the HD CENTRE Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue c o u n t r y s t u d y number 3 • march 2008 Guns and Violence in the El Salvador Peace Negotiations Cate Buchanan & Joaquín Chávez ABOUT THE HD CENTRE The Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD Centre) is an independent Swiss foundation dedicated to help- ing improve the global response to armed conflict. It attempts to achieve this by mediating between warring parties and providing support to the broader media- tion community. The HD Centre is driven by humanitarian values; its goal is to reduce the consequences of violent conflict, improve security, and ultimately contribute to the peaceful resolution of conflict. The HD Centre began operations in 1999 and has since become one of the world’s leading conflict mediation organisations. Operational engagements are comple mented by policy and analytical work focused on civilian protec tion, mediation techniques, transitional issues and arms and security matters. Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue 114 rue de Lausanne Geneva, 1202 Switzerland Photo: former members of the Frente Farabundo Martí Phone +41 22 908 1130 para la Liberación Nacional cast shadows as they celebrate the 14th anniversary of the end of the civil war. Fax +41 22 908 1140 San Salvador, 16 January 2006. © Reuters/Alex Pena E-mail [email protected] Design & layout: Richard Jones ([email protected]) Website www.hdcentre.org Printing: Paul Green Printing, London Guns and Violence in the El Salvador Peace Negotiations Cate Buchanan & Joaquín Chávez NEGOTIATING DISARMAMENT: STRATEGIES FOR TACKLING SECURITY ISSUES IN PEACE PROCESSES Negotiating Disarmament explores issues surrounding officials, armed groups, donors, civil society and the planning, timing and techniques of a range of UN officials; security issues, including violence reduction, weapons • demystify concerns through identifying strategies, control, disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration trends and lessons over time; activities and justice and security sector transformation, • identify and describe common obstacles faced in in the processes of peacemaking—negotiations, agree­ addressing security issues in peace processes, and ments and implementation strategies. Through expert suggest ways these may be tackled; and meetings, specific peace process reviews, perception • contribute to the generation of analysis and the studies, interviews and analysing experiences over building of linkages within the violence reduction the last two decades, as well as drawing upon the HD and prevention, peacemaking, peacebuilding, Centre’s own operational engagements, it aims to: conflict resolution, and arms control communities. • provide practical and accessible guidance on a The project is supported by the Governments of range of security issues to those actively engaged in Canada, Norway and Switzerland. For more informa­ peace making, including mediators, government tion, go to www.hdcentre.org 2 Negotiating Disarmament Country Study Number 3 CONTENTS Contributors and Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Terms and Definitions .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 8 Section 1: Background to the War ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 11 Section 2: The Peace Negotiations..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 16 Section 3: Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration ................................................................................................................................................................. 20 Section 4: Security Sector Reform ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 27 Section 5: Weapons Control and Reduction .................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 30 Section 6: Assistance to Survivors of Armed Violence .................................................................................................................................................................................... 33 Section 7: Observations .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 36 Section 8: Suggested Further Resources ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 38 Annex 1: Interviews ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 39 Annex 2: List of Main Participants in the Negotiation Teams ........................................................................................................................................................... 40 Endnotes ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 41 Map: El Salvador ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 7 Box 1: El Salvador historical timeline .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Box 2: Timeline of meetings and agreements ................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 18 Box 3: Violence and weapons in El Salvador today ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 32 Box 4: Surviving armed violence in El Salvador ....................................................................................................................................................................................................... 34 Guns and Violence in the El Salvador Peace Negotiations 3 CONTRIBUTORS AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Contributers to the report Acknowledgements Joaquín Chávez was a member of the FMLN until Over the course of the ‘Negotiating Disarmament’ 1996. Between 1997 and 2000, he worked as a research project, the governments of Canada, Norway and and policy consultant for the United Nations Devel­ Switzerland have been steady supporters. The trip to opment Programme in El Salvador on social violence El Salvador for the interviews was funded by Norway. concerns. Chávez is the cofounder of the Central External reviews and publication production was American Studies Programme at California State funded by Canada. The Centre appreciates this sup­ University Northridge, where he taught on culture port as well as the advice, input and other assistance and violence in Central America and Latin American from officials of these governments. history. Chávez is currently a fellow at the Department of History of New York University, and conducts research on intellectuals and the origins of the Salva­ doran civil war. Cate Buchanan is the manager of the ‘Negotiating Disarmament’ project of which this report is one in a series of publications. Since 2001 she has managed the arms and violence reduction portfolio at the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue. In
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