Sad to say, the agony of El Salvador will not be over until those responsible for its long, tragic civil war face truth and justice. There is nothing really surprising in the findings of a United Nations commission that has traced the origins of infamous atrocities right to the top of the military command and, to a lesser extent, to the leadership of the rebel Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN). In a small country of 5 million people (less the 75,000 killed in the 12-year war) these things are widely whispered.
Now that some of the names of key culprits are out on the record, El Salvador faces the same questions that have tortured other Latin American countries: how to reconcile forgiveness with retribution; how to purge the government of its bad actors and yet begin the process of healing.
President Alfredo Cristiani's response has been classic for those in power during the initial postwar phase. He favors amnesty, wants the past forgotten, is anxious to get on with the business of rehabilitation. The FMLN opposes amnesty and promotes ......TC ban from government service, even for those implicated in its own hierarchy.