A FEW hundred yards from the main road we encounter our first barricade, immense stones piled across the path. The barricade is, in effect, a border marker. Beyond it the authority of the governing junta does not hold.
Several other journalists and I save must entered a zone' in central El Salvador con trolled by the Farabundo Marti Liberation (FPL).
As we travel deeper into the zone. passing more barricades across roads and paths, we realise area den guerrilla camp. Salute But from where we stand we can see me wawe solties sobe ot the volcano. We see big fields corn and other crops, several villages with thousands inhabitants. isolated guerrilla camp. • Kather it is a ville colnulullity. where Deu Die work or go to school, living their family lives.
Pot loo thing thi anywhere Salvador, but here the people are charge and are beginning to build a new kind of society.
into the liberated zone, felt San Have Silice Icaville are greeted by the armed detachment that will guard us. They are ocasalils dila Tulal WOrKerS. young and old, armea with rites and pistols. Some raise their fists broad smiles breaking across their faces.
After hiking for several hours mueles are paths, come to une centra village. There crowd they around cameras But aside from the children life goes on as usual. Women are of their houses. Men are working thousand Salvadoran villages, except for the fact that we can see weapons The village church has been turned into a nel nosotal. IL Is run by an older worker wno nas had no formal medical education, although he has had some experience raditional The wounded hammocks inside the church. and dispensary stands where the altar used to be One of the wounded suffered burns on his face and arms when tried set fire venice Zacatecoluca Vester day. The others, the youngest ontwelve, suffer from gunshot wounds. he MEXICO BELIZE HONDURAS COSTA RICA PANAMI ORDEN has 1s now worked communally. ment's cosmetic 'land reform, Institute Agrarian Transformation (ISTA)
hacienda owner. So formally it belongs to the state.
But in practice,' Juan says 'we own it. We have managed t force ISTA to deal with us about prices and terms however, that because of the war they have not been able to plant to the extent the would uke Later in the evening we attend a dance. Are haven donke small path through the forest and crossing two small rivers we reach where the dance is to be guarded by several companeros with rifles : 200 to 300 people al c inside the house. In a corner there is a small band — a bass, two and drum. Dåncing couples fill the area Proud On the wall a weekly schedule for the guerrilla recruits is posted. The schedule contains a full list of Al one polt the music stoD anan older man canes ons proletariar interna tionalism he begins The crowd responas will 'Viva!
lIve solidarity!' The speaker explains that the struggle is internanional in scope. The enemy is not only here in El Salvador, , but äll over the world.
are, . proud welcome fighters from says. ouner countrie our commun ty. We are proud that they have come here learn about our struggle so thes inform the fighting OWI countries The crowd turns to look at us and begin applaulls alt asked to sav alew woros. ach o us gets up on the stool in turn and La few words about our resolv to ly with tneir struggle The faces on the dance floor are filled with These poor Dcasalll. WUIKCI Shall area Salvador recognise the imporand know that if we can make th tionalism come alive in a concrete that can directly aid their rather than death Looking out at those faces I tnink cacn or us more concretely recognises how important it is to I solidarity for the Salvadoran people pose of the dance, or course, the pose of the dance. 'Of course and bad or • good time But this dance has another very succial • our Dosc. 1t Is lo collect money for our revolutonary army, for food for our soldiers.'
----- pull-quotes -----
thed. ise held