Local volunteers to observe elections in El Salvador

With the fear that it is a stolen election filled with decite and lies at least there are some people willing to stick there necks out to focus on what they can to make sure that the elections in there localities are fair to the best of there knowledge..

A small group of Halifax volunteers are heading to El Salvador next month to help observe the municipal elections. They will return for the presidential elections next March.

The Halifax Observers Project: El Salvador (HOPES) feels that being part of an international presence will help ensure that the country’s elections remain democratic.

Dr. Timothy Bood is one of six volunteers headed to San Salvador, the capital city, in January. HOPES was invited to observe the elections by the popular FMLN party. Bood says many Salvadorians see the coming elections as an opportunity for change.

“There’s a good chance that there’ll be a real choice for the people of El Salvador and a party that is very much interested in improving the health care — dedicated to the welfare of the people who are living in poverty — has a chance to win,” Bood said. “But there’s also a great fear that the election will be stolen.”

El Salvador has only been a democratic country since a 1992 peace accord ended a civil war that killed 90,000 people over 12 years. Around 80 per cent of these were civilian deaths.