Gun fragments, photos, combat plans and mountain hideouts. These are the latest tourist attractions in formerly war-torn El Salvador.
The country has been peaceful since 1992, but the 12-year civil war left 76 000 dead, thousands injured and an imprint of violence on the country that residents in economically depressed areas are trying to turn into a profit.
For a fee, former guerrillas will take visitors on tours of former battlefields or mountain hideouts, while museums display war memorabilia. The government has applauded the effort as a way to draw more tourists to El Salvador.
The former Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front, or FMLN, which led the guerrilla uprising, has teamed up with local businesses to create the so-called “peace route”.
The mountain town of Perquin, 280km east of San Salvador, was considered the guerrilla capital during the fighting, and it served as the FMLN’s headquarters. Today, it is home to the Museum of the Revolution, which features cannons, uniforms, pieces of Soviet weaponry and other weapons once used by the FMLN.
The museum - a small, adobe house - was founded in the mid-1990s, but has become popular with visitors.
“We came to learn the real history of our country,” said Stephanie Acevedo, on a field trip with 180 other students.
Amanda Navarro, who has lived in New York for the past 35 years, said she hadn’t been back to El Salvador for years and “the first thing I wanted to do was come to the museum”.
In San Salvador, Carlos Enrique Consalvi, a former announcer for the guerrilla-run We Will Win Radio, opened his own museum to display video, audio and photos from the conflict. The museum also includes a library and writings about the war.
In the northern area of Chalatenango, another group of former guerrillas recently formed a co-operative to restore a series of mountain caves and other bunkers.
Tourism Minister Ruben Rochi has applauded the efforts, arguing that anything that promotes tourism in El Salvador is good.
Between 1996 and 2006, 7.3 million visitors helped generate a record 14.8 billion El Salvador colons (R12.3 billion). Most of those tourists are seeking out El Salvador’s beaches, but more are becoming interested in the country’s infamous past.
If You Go:
Perquin, El Salvador: http://www.perquin.org/. Museum of the Revolution is located a few blocks north-west of Perquin’s central park. Open Tuesday to Sunday.
Other attractions: The still-active Volcan Izalco, Cerro Verde National Park, Pacific coast beaches.
Food: Don’t leave without trying a pupusa, a thick tortilla filled with beans, cheese or meat, and topped with a tomato sauce and cabbage.
central park
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