Salvadoran president convicted of illicit enrichment
From InSight Crime,
As Hector Silva writes, Funes' conviction "leaves a bittersweet taste." I was really excited about the prospect of a coalition between moderate forces led by Funes and the FMLN. Twenty years of ARENA rule had been disappointing. However, Funes and the FMLN were rarely on the same page when it came to governing. Funes grew increasingly erratic. Things did not go so well.
Given Funes' conviction and corruption accusations surrounding numerous FMLN officials, it's hard to see the last eight years as very positive for the people of El Salvador. And it is equally difficult to place much faith in the FMLN in the years ahead.
On November 28, Salvadoran authorities convicted [Mauricio] Funes, who served as president from 2009 to 2014, of illicit enrichment. If the conviction stands, Funes would be disqualified from holding public office for 10 years. The conviction also opens the door for prosecutors to initiate criminal proceedings against the former president, who is currently hiding out in Nicaragua.
The trial against Funes began in February 2016, when the Supreme Court made public a resolution indicating evidence of illicit enrichment by the former president. In El Salvador, officials have to declare their income to the Supreme Court upon taking office and upon stepping down. In Funes’ case, reports of these declarations revealed extravagent expenses and unjustified income.
After a civil process that lasted a year and a half — and after Funes left for Nicaragua under the auspices of President Daniel Ortega — a Salvadoran court ordered the former president and one of his sons to return just over $400,000 to state coffers, equivalent to a third of the funds that the courts indicated were of illicit origin.This is a really big story but I am not sure that anything significant will come from it. Funes already seems somewhat irrelevant to Salvadoran politics.
As Hector Silva writes, Funes' conviction "leaves a bittersweet taste." I was really excited about the prospect of a coalition between moderate forces led by Funes and the FMLN. Twenty years of ARENA rule had been disappointing. However, Funes and the FMLN were rarely on the same page when it came to governing. Funes grew increasingly erratic. Things did not go so well.
Given Funes' conviction and corruption accusations surrounding numerous FMLN officials, it's hard to see the last eight years as very positive for the people of El Salvador. And it is equally difficult to place much faith in the FMLN in the years ahead.
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