Gender division of labor of girls in El Salvador.
During the civil war, many women and girls in El Salvador began
Girl from El Salvador
to take leadership positions outside the traditional domestic sphere, becoming leaders in grassroots organizations and Christian base communities. While women in El Salvador is often placed on “support functions” cooked for the troops and many women in El Salvador became combatants and occupying key positions in military and political leadership in the FMLN.
Although women in El Salvador often work outside the home and generate good income, are solely responsible for housework and childcare.
The relative situation of men and women from El Salvador: The women of El Salvador also began to realize that the revolution could not end the inequality in society regardless of inequality between men and women. Each of the five branches of the FMLN has its own women’s organizations. In women’s organizations have fought for the rights of women in El Salvador in work outside the home, and gave loans to women cooperatives and small firms owned by women, education, health care and financial support for children.
The abandonment of the Father of families increased after the war, and economic support for children is still scarce. Families headed by single women in El Salvador often live in extreme poverty, and women are forced to work for low wages. The average wage for women in El Salvador is 28 percent less than men and almost a third of girls under sixteen years of working to support the family. Women are also underrepresented in politics.
Violence against women in El Salvador took place during the war, and has continued at an alarming rate. Violent crimes like murder and rape increased after the signing of peace accords. Domestic abuse, along with alcohol abuse, is said to be frequent.
Marriage, Family and Kinship in El Salvador
Marriage: Among the poor, marriage is the couple’s decision. The most common type of marriage is informal: a man and a woman establish a home and have children without a civil or church service. These unions are recognized under the law but can be easily dissolved. However, men are obliged to support the children conceived in cohabitation, as well as the women who have no formal relationship.
A marriage performed in a church is considered irreversible, and many people expect to have children to marry. Couples must be 18 years old to marry unless the woman is pregnant or already have kids. In both civil and religious marriage, divorce law requires a separation and a
El Salvador Girl
cause. The Catholic Church and many evangelical churches do not tolerate divorce.
The domestic unit generally consists of a couple and their children, but also other family members can live at home. The man is nominally the head of the family, but women in El Salvador, especially in the poorest families often provide financial support for their children. There is a large proportion of families headed by single women.
Households in El Salvador: The family is very important in the national culture. A woman may have cousins, uncles, aunts, and grandparents on both sides for support. The Family Code recognizes the importance of extended family and needs of various categories of relatives to support their families with food, clothing, housing, health and education. Either spouse may be forced to pay child support to others. Grandparents can apply for support grandchildren, and vice versa. Parents should support their children and brothers and sisters may be forced to pay child support of his brothers.
