The wind moved suddenly, shaking the branches of the mango trees. Just a few days before, a wave of humidity—different from the salty air of the ocean—had settled over El Bajo Lempa, the area surrounding the River Lempa in Ciudad Romero, in southeastern El Salvador. The winds presaged the storm that later came to be known as Hurricane Mitch, which hit the region with a vengeance.
Although not generally accustomed to life on the coast, the residents of Ciudad Romero were among the few communities in Central America to be prepared for the hurricane. Even though crops were lost, animals died and adobe houses collapsed, out of 67 communities with approximately 35,000 residents, there was only one death—a heart-attack fatality. The exemplary preparedness of the residents of Ciudad Romero has its roots in the strong local-level organization that has characterized this community since its founding on March 24, 1991—the eleventh anniversary of the murder of the community’s namesake, Archbishop Romero, at the hands of paramilitary death squads. The city was founded by Salvadoran refugees who had been living in Panama, and returned to El Salvador as that country’s peace process was just getting off the ground.
The government and military, however, were not particularly pleased about their arrival. El Bajo Lempa has long been sought after by landowning elites as a prime location for cotton cultivation. The nearby Bay of Jiquilisco has been targeted by casino and hotel owners as a center for tourism. Both business interests and the military envisioned building airstrips in the area. The refugees established the community under constant harassment from the armed forces and later received no assistance from the local government.
The response to the crisis was so effective because of the peasant-created Council of the Communities of the Bajo Lempa. In 1995 the repatriated peasants founded the Council as a way to ensure that humanitarian aid destined to Ciudad Romero arrived safely. As the organization grew, it began to focus on social as well as environmental problems. Today, the Council is the coordinating body for 67 communities, situated from San Marcos Lempa to the foot of Puente de Oro to Méndez Island in Jiquilisco Bay. Members of the coordinating committee, who are elected and receive salaries, generally attend to the needs of communal production and commercialization. In all of the communities, a total of 240 parcels of land are cultivated communally.
The hurricane not only awoke the communities to the dangers of the advancing waters, but also to the potential weaknesses of their community structure for the future. Instead of ignoring the dangers, the Council reacted quickly. Community members began installing radios in key points of the zone in order to establish a permanent line of communication, to help prevent future disaster. Council member Mauricio Rosas explains that his well-constructed house, which survived the flooding, became a radio base for the region of La Canoa, situated on the shore of the river Lempa. Almost a year after the storm, he explains, the community has developed a system of community protection against not only storms, but common crime and other problems as well.
Although the Council of the Bajo Lempa has come far, its survival and that of its members is threatened as long as the government of El Salvador wants residents from the area to make way for tourism and military airstrips. To date the government has not constructed dams nor have they repaired damages. Community members fear the authorities hope the Lempa River will do their dirty work and force residents to leave. But Council members are working hard to protect Ciudad Romero’s hard-won gains.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dagoberto Gutierrez is an environmental lawyer and a member of the board of directors of the Salvadoran Environmental Fund. (FONAES)
