Eye on El Salvador
In June 1999, a small group of legislative aides and journalists traveled to the Central American country of El Salvador to visit Army reservists from the 309th Combat Support Hospital participating in hurricane relief efforts in the area. I went along in my role as editor of the Chelmsford Independent.
My stories and reporting became part of a three-part series on the 309th mission, the local people involved and the American role in El Salvador. The series ran in numerous papers owned by Community Newspaper Company.
A mission of mercy and must
309th Reserve tends to El Salvador's ills
By Robert Greene
Staff Writer, Chelmsford Independent
By day's end, Emmanuel Hernandez had collected more than 15 one-liter plastic bottles.
He could have had a lot more. The bottles were everywhere -- scattered on the ground, overflowing recycle bins and clutched in the sweaty hands of the Army Reserve soldiers assigned to the 309th Combat Support Hospital.
El Salvador in mid June is hot and, because it's the beginning of the rainy season, it's humid, too. The reservists, most of them from Massachusetts, seemed to bear up well despite their heavy fatigues and heavier work load.
Emmanuel, 12, who lives in a small village called Concepción Batres, said he would use the empty bottles to carry water to and from school. Then he opened his mouth and used his finger to show what the American's had taken from him -- a rotted tooth.
"Se va el dolor," he said. The pain is gone, said Blanca Rivera,15, translating.
Throughout most of the summer, Army medical reservists from the 309th, one of three combat support hospitals in the 804th Medical Brigade, have traveled to El Salvador to work, two weeks at a time, in some of the most impoverished villages in that country. The mission, called Task Force A New Hope, is part of the U.S. relief effort set in motion following Hurricane Mitch.
The Hanscom reservists set up temporary clinics to provide basic medical care to poor Salvadorans. The last group of the summer left from Hanscom Air Force Base earlier this week. That group will set up shop at a U.S. military base near the village of Chilanguera. The village was destroyed when Mitch sent a 50-foot wall of water crashing through it.
Local reservists included in the summer's missions are: Cpl. Christopher Morin of Maynard, Sgt. Thomas Connors of Billerica, Capt. Kathryn Bowse of Lincoln, Staff Sgt. Felix Gregorian of Chelmsford, Lt. Kenneth Hales of Bedford, Maj. John Croteau of Bedford, Lt. Col. Andrea Wallen of Acton, Capt. Jose Cortez and Sgt. Stephen Fredericks of Chelmsford.
Conners said he joined the Reserve six years ago to give his life direction and discipline. He is trained as an Army medic but he works as a microprocessor programmer in Hollis, N.H.
"I was kind of wild in high school," said Conners, who graduated from Billerica Memorial High School in 1991.
During his time in El Salvador, Conners assisted with nearly 20,000 patients, including a boy with a large gash on his arm and a man who had been struck by a car. Conners held the boy as doctors stitched up the youth's arm and helped to stabilize the car-accident victim for his trip to a hospital.
"It's such a different culture," Conners said. "We got him to the hospital where he was pronounced DOA. They wanted us to take the body back with us."
Conners said the most difficult part of the mission was dealing with the communication gap.
"I'm absolutely taking Spanish when I get home," Conners said.
Spc. Israel Saldana of Shrewsbury joined the Reserve five years ago to scare up money for college. He's enrolled in the music education program at University of Massachusetts Lowell and teaches guitar at Chelmsford Public Charter School.
Saldana said he learned more during the El Salvador mission then at any other time during his time with the Reserve.
"I was doing full diagnosis work," Saldana said. "I'd do the tests, blood pressure checks, make a diagnosis, then a doctor would check my work. If we were in a wartime situation I could easily be in that situation without backup."
Saldana, who specializes in combat medicine, said he joined the Reserve, in part, to honor his father who served in the Vietnam War.
"I think he would be proud," the soldier said.
"We're all very excited to be here," said Staff Sgt. Pauline Yax of Plymouth, as she tended to her Salvadoran patients last month. Yax's group, led by Col. Jeff Keane, head oncologist at Lowell General Hospital, was the first of six groups from the 309th to work in El Salvador.
"The civilians are very friendly, and they are so pleased that we try to communicate with them," said Yax, who admitted she speaks very little Spanish.
Capt. Susan Fitzgerald of Millis said the damage caused by Hurricane Mitch has exacerbated many existing medical problems in the region.
"We're seeing a lot of parasites and infections like tonsillitis made worse by inattention," said Fitzgerald, who works as a nurse practitioner when she is not serving in the Reserve.
Debris left by the hurricane has contaminated much of the local water supply, Fitzgerald said. The clinic features a lesson in preventative medicine, including information on why villagers should boil the local water before drinking it.
"But boiled water is not always convenient," Fitzgerald said. In addition, regular health care is out of most Salvadorans' budget. Small medical problems grow into big problems if they are not treated, Fitzgerald said.
Staff Sgt. Christopher Brown, a lab tech at Deaconess-Nashoba Hospital in Ayer, described his experience in El Salvador as both rewarding and frustrating.
"It's hot, I miss my kids and the work never stops," Brown said. "But I'm glad I'm here."
Maj. James Mahoney of Lynn, executive officer of the 309th, who has the distinction of being the last county commissioner elected in Essex County, gave the mission high marks, in his view.
"This has run smoother than a lot of other missions," Mahoney said. "We know the soldiers are happy when they gripe but keep smiling and working.
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Language, rocks have an impact on troops
By Robert Greene
Staff Writer, Chelmsford Independent
Lost luggage, rock throwers, curses and shouts of "Gringo, go home" -- some would say it's all part of life in the service but it was a bit of a shock to the 36 men and women of the 309th Combat Support Hospital who spent two weeks in El Salvador last month.
"I don't know if this country was ready for us yet," said Army Reserve Sgt. Thomas "T.J." Conners of Billerica.
Conners and other members of the 309th recounted tales of thrown rocks, curses and fruit. In one incident, a soldier was struck by a rock but not seriously injured, Conners said.
"I think we're doing this country good," Conners said as he surveyed the Medical Readiness Unit the 309th had established in a small village called Concepción Batres. "But once they leave that gate they don't want us here."
The 309th is headquartered at Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford. It's part of the U.S. Army Reserve 804th Medical Brigade operating out of Fort Devens.
As part of relief efforts for Central American victims of Hurricane Mitch, six groups of reservists from Massachusetts will spend two weeks each in El Salvador performing a variety of tasks.
Conners and his colleagues were charged with providing basic medical and dental care to the residents of two impoverished El Salvadorian towns -- Concepción Batres and Usulutan. The troops were not allowed to carry weapons and many admitted to being concerned about their personal safety.
"I have felt unsafe at times," said Sgt. Laura Warner of Brighton. "I think we all have."
Maj. James Mahoney of Lynn, executive officer of the 309th, said he had heard the soldiers' reports of obscene gestures and rock throwers but that he had not witnessed the events. He recalled that one resident of Usulutan threw a grape at him but that he was not at all certain it was an attack.
Many of the incidents occurred as the group was traveling between the Medical Readiness sites and its more permanent base in San Miguel. The constant state of worry led to morale problems within the group, the soldiers said.
"Morale about treating patients is very high," said Staff Sgt. Christopher Brown of Ayer. "Morale about leaving is also very high."
The soldiers said many of the offenders were young men. Gen. Ronald Silverman, commander of the 804th Medical Brigade, believes he knows why.
"It's not that they don't want us here." Silverman said. "Any soldier in any country is going to get some of that."
Any antagonism among the Salvadorans was likely enhanced by the number of youth gangs in the country, the general said. Many of the gangs have their roots in the United States. Under federal law, any illegal immigrant arrested for a minor crime in the States is immediately deported to his home country. Young Salvadoran men who became involved in American gangs before they were deported tend to form copycat groups, Silverman said.
The general said some of the soldiers' concerns were most likely a result of being a stranger in a strange land, and the language and culture barrier. He believes the soldiers may not have totally understood what the offenders were shouting and were on edge due to the number of weapons visible in the country. In El Salvador, anything of value (shops, gas stations, etc.) is likely to be accompanied by an armed guard.
Spc. Israel Saldana, 24, of Shewsbury, agreed with the general's assessment.
"When I saw people in plain clothes with guns it caught me off guard," said Saldana, who teaches guitar at Chelmsford Charter School. "But it was just a matter of getting used to it. It's a different culture."
The soldiers arrived in El Salvador in early June. The group's luggage was delayed on the first leg of the trip so the troops spent the better part of a night shivering in an airplane hangar in Alabama, Conners said.
When the group set up the first Medical Readiness Unit in Usulutan, no guards were provided to serve as crowd control. That was soon remedied courtesy of the El Salvadorian military. About 10 days into the 14-day trip a U.S. military policeman was assigned to the group as an armed escort.
The second Reserve group to go to El Salvador -- it arrived as Conners' group was leaving June 19 - was assigned a MP from day one.
"This is the first group," Silverman said. "What we learn here will be passed on to future commanders."
Members of the 309th were not allowed to carry weapons during the El Salvador mission.
"Wherever possible we are trying to be unarmed," said Maj. Sam Poulten, Silverman's special projects officer. "There is an important reason for that. We want people to see that we're here to help. It's very easy to be misunderstand a man in uniform, carrying a weapon, even though he's saying or she's saying, `I'm a doctor,' or, `I'm a nurse,' but the guy next to you has an M-16. It's very easy when a Salvadoran armed soldier says I am escorting doctor so and so from the United States."
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Exercise provides training, bridge to friendship
By Robert Greene
Staff Writer, Chelmsford Independent
It's not just a job, it's a logistical nightmare.
"Until late January we all thought we were going to Texas, in August, to train," said Maj. Sam Poulten, former commander of the 309th Army Reserve Combat Support Hospital, based at Hanscom Air Force Base.
Instead, members of the 309th packed their bags and gear last month and boarded a plane to El Salvador to set up medical clinics in two villages hit hard by Hurricane Mitch.
Mitch struck Central America in late October. The storm killed 9,000 people, injured 13,000 and left nearly 3 million people homeless. Around 9,000 people are still missing. Mitch's 180 mph winds battered Central America for six days, dumping more than 10 feet of rain.
By early November, President Clinton had committed $70 million in relief aid to the region. A few days later, the Army received orders to pitch in.
"This mission, because of the hurricane, was conceived in January," said Poulten, of Chelmsford. "January 1999 was when it became an Army concept and the federal government looked around and said, `The reserves are trained to do this, they've done it before.'"
The 309th arrived in El Salvador on June 4 and set up a base camp in a Salvadoran military hospital in the city of San Miguel. The group's mission is called Task Force A New Hope. It's part of Operation New Horizons, a mission where 31,000 reservists and National Guard soldiers are working to rebuild bridges, villages and roads wiped out by the hurricane. Over the course of the summer, six groups of reservists from Massachusetts will spend two weeks each in El Salvador performing a variety of tasks. The project will end in August -- just in time for hurricane season - and start up again next March.
Operation New Horizons is made up of reserve units from 16 states. The medical portion of the project, dubbed Task Force A New Hope, hails from the Massachusetts 804th Medical Brigade. The 309th Combat Support Hospital operates as part of the 804th.
Seventy-five percent of the U.S. Army's medical personnel serve in the reserves. It's not feasible nor cost effective for the Army to maintain a standing force of medical professionals, Poulten said.
"So, the natural way to go would be to have a doctor be on active duty for a few years, then go into private practice as a reservist." Poulten said. "Many doctors go into the reserves as a way to pay for medical school."
The 804th's mission in El Salvador is to set up a series of "Medical Readiness Units" to provide basic medical care to villages affected by Hurricane Mitch. In the clinics, the villagers are evaluated triage-style and sent to specialists - doctors, medics, the pharmacy or dentists.
"We see close to a thousand patients a day," said Col. Ronald Silverman, commander of the 804th. "The care that we give ... the majority of the care is preventative. We pull out close to 100 teeth a day."
During its time in El Salvador, the Hanscom group treated nearly 20,000 people at medical sites, establishing medical readiness units in Concepcion Batres and Usulutan. The units set up in the villages' schools. The students had the week off.
On Aug. 17, Silverman, a dentist from Alexandria, Va., was promoted to brigadier general during a ceremony at Devens. He is the first dentist in the history of the Reserve to command a medical brigade. Silverman's command includes three combat support hospitals -- the 309th of Hanscom, the 399th of Taunton and the 405th of Connecticut
Operation New Horizons is part politics, part philanthropy.
Nearly 200 people died in the village of Chilanguera when a 50-foot wall of water swept through it. Hurricane rains had swollen a nearby river, threatening to burst a dam. Salvadoran officials opted to open the dam, located up the river from Chilanguera, without informing the village. The Army channeled the river back to its proper course and moved the village to higher ground. In addition, soldiers are building a new school, medical clinic and community center for the village.
The U.S. funneled millions of dollars into the country in the 1980s to support the Salvadoran government against the forces of a Marxist-rebel group, the Farabundo Marte Front for National Liberation. The 13-year war between the government's forces and the FMLN resulted in the death of 70,000 Salvadorans. The FMLN remains a force in Salvadoran politics and it does not look favorably on American involvement in the area. Other political parties share the FMLN's sentiment.
"My theory is, if you want a friend in times of danger be a friend when it's not dangerous," Poulten said. "Hurricane Mitch did not ravage the United States."
Once the Army completely withdraws its troops from Panama in the fall, the only U.S. military-presence in the region will be a base in Honduras. Making friends with the Salvadoran government makes sense for the future, Poulten said.
"We do much more for both our country and their country by showing that the United States can fix things instead of just blowing things up," Poulten said.
"Everyone knows we're pretty good at banging things up. What will impress them, is that a country as wealthy and as cut off from the day-to-day life here is willing to help."
Silverman said the El Salvador mission was important to his troops because it gave them a chance to test their skills in a real-life situation. During most medical Reserve exercises, the soldiers practice their skills on manikins and through simulations.
"The main mission of the [Medical Readiness Unit] is to provide care and nation building to the locals, it also provides us training," Poulten said. "There are quite a few of our staff, especially our assistants, the medical techs, who don't necessarily work in the medical field for their civilian jobs."
The soldiers of the 309th worked side by side with Salvadoran doctors to treat patients, administer anti-parasite medication, pull teeth, diagnose illnesses and perform minor medical treatments.
"There was a little boy yesterday who fell on a tin can and gashed his arm to the bone," Silverman said. "In a situation like this, in this type of environment, his mother would have wrapped it up and that would have been it. It would have gotten infected it would have swollen and the mother would probably have taken him to the hospital at that point, but by then he would have been a sick kid. I don't know if he would have lost the arm."
Poulten added:
"One of our medics [Sgt. Thomas Conners of Billerica] was on his knees for 20 minutes holding the boy. Now he's trained as an Army medic, but that's not what he does in civilian life. When he was finished he was actually emotional about what he'd done. That's going to carry not only him, but all his friends for a very long time."
A day earlier, the soldiers provided emergency treatment to a man who had been struck by a car right outside the clinic.
"They stabilized him enough to get him to a hospital where he died," Poulten said.
Shipping the 309th to El Salvador did not cost taxpayers much more than shipping the group to Texas for training, Poulten said. The only added expenses were non-reusable items such as medications and disposable medical supplies.
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Congressman: There is a chance for lasting peace in El Salvador
By Robert Greene
Staff Writer, Chelmsford Independent
Fifth District Congressman Marty Meehan, D-Lowell, has kept an eye on El Salvador since his campaign against Chet Atkins in 1992.
Voters of the district, many of them Central American immigrants or descendents of immigrants, urged the then-candidate to adopt Atkins' commitment to the democratization of the country. In 1994, Meehan traveled with President Clinton to El Salvador to oversee that country's first democratic election.
"Since that time I have been monitoring the country's social, political and economic situation and believe there is a real chance for lasting peace," Meehan said.
Later, when reports of brutalities and assassinations committed by El Salvador's new non-political police force reached Meehan's office, the congressman wrote a letter to the United Nations, urging it to pressure the country to reform. The Clinton Administration also applied pressure and the El Salvadorian government eventually complied. John Dawson, deputy chief of the U.S. Embassy in San Salvador, recently told Meehan staffer Chris Doherty that he believed El Salvador was finally on the right track.
When Hurricane Mitch struck last October, Meehan worked with Cardinal Bernard Law to facilitate one of the first shipments of community-generated relief supplies, Doherty said.
Doherty, a Billerica native, has served as Meehan's disaster relief advisor for the past two years. Last month, Doherty, now of Lowell, was part of a group of legislative aides and reporters who traveled to El Salvador to visit a clinic set up by the Massachusetts 804th Medical Brigade as part of the "New Horizons" mission. Doherty joined the group as Meehan's eyes on relief efforts and the Army Reserve.
"My feeling, my first thought was that there is a real chance for a lasting democracy," Doherty said. "Some parties are still upset with us but, by and large, everyone I saw was grateful."
The parties Doherty was speaking about include the remnants of the Farabundo Marte Front for National Liberation (FMLN), the Marxist group that rebelled against the El Salvadorian government in the 1980s. The U.S. threw its weight and money behind the government.
Doherty wrote up his findings in a report to the congressman. Meehan will use Doherty's information during his considerations and debates on foreign and military policy.
"The New Horizons mission provides our men and women with valuable training," Meehan said. "Instead of simulations, the Reserves deal with real disease, real people in a real situation. In this particular case the troops learn to overcome issues of language, culture and the environment. This mission provides excellent training for real combat situations."
Meehan is a member of Congress' Armed Services Committee and as such, he has direct input into the nation's military budget. Total cost of New Horizons, which includes activities throughout Central America, is $62.3 million. Funding for the project is part of $621 million Congress approved in May for continued relief and redevelopment work in the region, Doherty said.
Meehan said he will continue to support the work of the New Horizons operation, a conclusion based in part on Doherty's report.
United States Sen. John Kerry also sent a representative on the trip -- Jim Shaer of the senator's Boston office. Through his press liaison, Kyle Sullivan, Kerry said he planned to continue his support for the New Horizons operation, as well as other humanitarian aid.
"There is a need for stability in a country so close to the United States," Doherty said. Helping to rebuild El Salvador keeps the U.S. from being flooded with Salvadoran immigrants and encourages an amicable relationship between the two countries, Doherty said.
The U.S. also has an interest in the economic stability of the region, Meehan said. In February, President Clinton pledged to open and encourage trade relations between the two countries. El Salvador's exports are largely agricultural -- coffee, sugar cane and the like -- but the country has readily accepted American cars, restaurants and products.
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U.S.-El Salvador relations have altered over the years
By Robert Greene
Staff Writer, Chelmsford Independent
In the fall of 1998, a powerful hurricane slammed into Central America, killing thousands and rendering more than a million people homeless in Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala.
The victims of "Hurricane Mitch" attracted worldwide attention and the United States stepped up to provide more than $600 million in emergency aid and debt relief.
It was hardly the first time America has thrown its weight and money into the region. During the 1980s, members of the Reagan administration used legitimate and not-so-legitimate means to fund the Nicaraguan Contras, a group of pro-democracy rebels. America's military and monetary involvement in El Salvador began a short time earlier. In the 1997 book, "Our Own Backyard," author William LeoGrande describes America's 1980s foreign policy toward El Salvador as causing "the most bitter domestic political debate since Vietnam." By all accounts, El Salvador was America's longest and most expensive military endeavor between the years of the Vietnam War and the Persian Gulf conflict. America's plan for El Salvador called for changes in the country's culture, political system, economics and social and military structure. The practice became known as "nation building."
America's involvement in El Salvador began during the Carter years. At the time, it seemed Cuban and Soviet influence was building among Third World countries, particularly in Nicaragua. According to LeoGrande, the Carter Administration believed the only way to put a cap on the spread of Communism in Central America was to quash a budding revolution in El Salvador led by the Farabundo Marte Front for National Liberation (FMLN). The FMLN were Marxist guerrillas linked to Cuba and the Sandinistas of Nicaragua.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the people of El Salvador were ready for a change. Most of the population was made up of peasant farmers, exploited by a small landed elite. The elite ruled the country in partnership with the military, which had a long history of bloody repression of dissenters. In 1980, President Carter opted to assist the Salvadoran government, a policy later pursued with vigor by the Reagan administration.
Both administrations chose to turn a blind eye to the Salvadoran government's tradition of human rights abuse. In the year leading up to Carter's decision, according to LeoGrande, the Salvadoran armed forces and the government's right-wing death squads had killed more than 8,000 civilians, including four U.S. churchwomen. In June of last year, one of the men serving 30 years in prison for the women's deaths claimed his superiors ordered him to kill the women, according to an Associated Press report.
The Reagan Administration's policy toward El Salvador was not much different from its predecessor's. Reagan's first Secretary of State, Alexander Haig, declared El Salvador was the "test case" of the administration's foreign policy and that America would "draw the line" there against "Communist interference."
El Salvador's civilization dates back to 1500 B.C. In June of 1524, Spanish captain Pedro de Alvarado began a war of conquest against native tribes of the country. De Alvarado abandoned the fight and retreated to Guatemala, but his cousin Diego de Alvarado claimed the country in 1528.
Central America threw off Spain's yoke on Sept. 15, 1821, with the signing of the "Act of Independence of Central America." El Salvador has fallen prey to internal political and economical instability, military dictatorships and revolution ever since.
El Salvador has an agricultural export-based economy; its principal exports are coffee and sugar cane. The majority of the population sees little of the money because most of the land is controlled by an elite five percent of the country. In 1980, war broke out between the government and the FMLN, the end result of two decades of popular activity in which the peasantry demanded its share of the economic pie.
Much of the war was carried out by bands of paramilitary troops, called "death squads." Their purpose was to terrorize the population so they would not support the FMLN, according to the U.S. State Department Web site. Members of the death squads roamed the countryside, killing peasants at random. Death squads killed more than 50,000 civilians during the 13-year war. The "official" conflict resulted in the deaths of 20,000 FMLN soldiers.
In December 1980, four U.S. churchwomen were raped and killed by the death squads because of the work the women had done on behalf of the peasantry. Investigations by Amnesty International and other human rights groups revealed the death squads were receiving financial support and military training from America. Embarrassed that American support led to the death of four of its own citizens, the United States government withdrew all military and financial aid for El Salvador. However, within a year, military aid had again resumed.
Peace was negotiated in El Salvador in 1993. The fighting ended, and, for the most part, the activities of the death squads stopped.
In March 1999, Francisco Flores, a member of the governing rightist party, the Republican National Alliance, beat his FMLN opponent by an overwhelming majority in the country's presidential election. Flores, 39, a graduate of Amherst College, succeeded businessman Armando Calderon Sol. Calderon Sol, elected in 1994, was the country's first popularly elected president since the end of the revolution..
Flores, who will serve a non-renewable five-year term, said he would "form a Cabinet of the widest range possible" and direct his attention to the nation's increasing crime woes. Flores' opponent in the election, Facundo Guardado, said Flores was "a new face" of "those who have always exploited this country."
- Material for this story was taken from Associated Press reports, reports from the Center for International Policy and "Our Own Backyard," by William LeoGrande, published by University of North Carolina Press, 1997.
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All in the family (Column)
By Robert Greene
Staff Writer Chelmsford Independent
As I sat in the San Salvador karaoke bar listening to a businessman sing a passable version of Frank Sinatra's "My Way" and sipping a local beer, I pondered the duality of life in Central America.
Earlier in the day, I'd chatted with several children in a small, poverty-stricken village called Concepción Batres. The youths were decked out in their best togs -- school uniforms -- khaki pants or skirts, and white shirts. El Salvador, a country about the size of Massachusetts, cares about education. It's literacy rate -- about 77 percent -- is relatively high. Yet, most of the country's children cannot afford books.
I visited El Salvador two months ago as part of a small group of journalists and legislative aides. Our trip, organized by the 804th Medical Brigade, included a tour of a medical readiness unit -- a temporary clinic -- set up in Concepción Batres by the 309th Combat Support Hospital. The 309th is based at Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford. Their mission in El Salvador is part of a hurricane relief effort called Operation New Horizons.
A few of the children I spoke to knew at least a little English, so between that and my extremely limited Spanish, we got our points across. I read more Spanish than I speak so much of our conversation took the form of notes scribbled in my Reporter's notebook.
These children lead difficult lives by our standards. Their homes are without electricity and plumbing. Most girls are married by their 15th birthday. Career prospects in rural areas are limited to farming and ... farming.
One girl, her name is Blanca, told me she wanted to work with computers. Blanca is originally from Mexico so she has most likely been exposed to more American ways and means than her peers. She speaks more English than most and knows the words and tunes to at least two American rock songs. She said many of her classmates are already getting married and starting families.
Most of the money in El Salvador is controlled by about five percent of the population. Less than a three-hour drive from where Blanca washes her one school uniform by hand, slightly older girls in San Salvador chat on cell phones and dance the night away. Odds are Blanca will never know what it's like to spend a night on the town or perform her memorized rock songs in a karaoke bar. (On the other hand, most city children will never know the satisfaction of bringing in a crop or the sublime joy of sitting down to a cool drink of water after a long, hot day in the fields.)
Two decades ago, the U.S. played a part in quashing a revolution in El Salvador. Today, the losers of that revolution -- still an active force in the country's politics -- look on us with disfavor. Many of the common people don't trust us or simply don't know what to think of the U.S. Even so, American influence can be seen everywhere in the country -- from the secondhand T-shirts worn by many Salvadorans (advertising places and products most of them will never see) to the large number of American fast-food restaurants lining the highways approaching the nation's capital.
America also has introduced the concept of gangs to El Salvador's youth. Young Salvadorans who leave their own country to seek a better life here tend to become involved in American youth gangs as a way to cope with the language and cultural barrier. Gang members who have entered this country illegally are immediately deported if they are arrested on minor charges. Many of these youths form their own gangs when they arrive home. Much of the crime in El Salvador is attributed to these groups.
Back in the bar, my karaoke-scored musings were interrupted when my party was urged to spend more money or hit the road. Our group -- composed of two reporters, a photographer, two legislative aides, an Army Reserve major from Chelmsford, an Elvis impersonator from Tennessee and his Salvadoran date -- opted to leave.
The net worth
Many years ago, I broke a cracker into my little sister's left eye. It was mostly an accident. Her tears and crumb-filled lashes really were not the result for which I was looking. I apologized (begged) profusely and offered to give her my magnet collection if she would avoid telling our mother about the incident. She agreed.
The next day, I took the magnets back and told her it was only a loan.
Around that same time, the United States opted to support a dictatorship in El Salvador rather than watch it fall to suspected communists. I can only assume that the deaths of 50,000 people -- including four American churchwomen -- from government-sponsored death squads were equally unintended. Twenty years later, the U.S. was one of the first countries to step up to help El Salvador recover from a devastating hurricane, offering free basic medical care to some of that country's poorest citizens. I'm wondering how many hidden strings big brother America has attached to that deal.
The Army reservists conducting America's business through Operation New Horizons are acting with pure hearts. The few days I spent with members of the 309th Combat Support Hospital, convinced me of that. I watched the soldiers cope with heat, disease-carrying insects, hostile bystanders and homesickness to do whatever they could for nearly 1,000 people a day. The troops treated diseases, knocked down parasitical infestations, yanked bad teeth and cared for minor wounds. They cheerfully worked to overcome language and cultural differences, and laughed and grinned their way through exhaustion and a grueling schedule. Elsewhere, reservists and National Guard troops struggled to rebuild roads, bridges and schools.
However, once the U.S. Army completes its withdrawal from Panama later this fall, the only permanent presence it will have in Central America is a rather small base in Honduras. Operation New Horizons looks like an easy way for the U.S. to trade money and manpower for a hand in Central American history. Only time will tell if countries aided by New Horizons are trading short-term aid for their long-term political independence. Meanwhile, I believe El Salvador stands to gain from the U.S. mission there.
The soldiers of the 309th admit their work in El Salvador amounts to a temporary bandage. The medicine the troops distributed will run out soon and are too expensive for most Salvadorans to replace. Most likely the villagers who received anti-parasite medication at the clinic are already playing host to a new crop of worms and amoebas.
It's easy to see how new roads and other improvements to the country's infrastructure will provide a long-term benefit to the Salvadoran people. The worthiness of the medical component of New Horizons is harder to define. The cures will not last and the adults, many of whom still harbor grudges about America's role in the revolution, are not likely to be won over by a few aspirins.
The children are another story. If, through the efforts of groups such as the 309th, the lives of El Salvador's children can be made easier and more fulfilling, then we should lend our shoulders to the task, regardless of the political undertones. It's hard for a child to dream if his belly is filled with worms and his future only looks onto a coffee bean field.
The U.S. should continue its work in El Salvador and build a better relationship with the country. El Salvador is still a young democracy and we can best help by building trade and cultural relations, and improving the lot of the Salvadoran people. If we can resist tinkering with El Salvador to our own advantage, the relationship between the countries could serve as a model for future "nation building." Maybe we have grown up enough in the last 20 years to finally serve as a good and honorable "big brother." Maybe we have not. (On a disturbing note: The U.S. is spending $250 million to help the Colombian government fight a left-wing revolution there. The rebels are supported by drug cartels and the U.S. aid is geared to end that revenue source.)
With any luck, in 20 years, a computer programmer named Blanca will, with a straight face, be able to say that she's glad she met us.
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