Former President of El Salvador, Mauricio Funes, passed away late Tuesday at the age of 65 while residing in Nicaragua. The Health Ministry of Nicaragua confirmed his death was due to a severe chronic illness.
Funes, who held the presidency from 2009 to 2014, sought refuge in Nicaragua for the last nine years of his life to escape various criminal charges in El Salvador. Under the protection of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, Funes was granted citizenship, which effectively thwarted any attempts at extradition back to his home country. The Nicaraguan Foreign Affairs Ministry has announced that Funes will be laid to rest in Nicaragua as per the family’s wishes.
Despite his political achievements, Funes was facing a total of 28 years in prison for corruption charges and dealings with notorious street gangs in El Salvador, but he never served a single day in jail. He emerged as a prominent figure through the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), the leftist party that arose from the nation’s civil war and dominated El Salvador’s politics for decades, although it has seen a significant decline in influence following the most recent elections.
On Wednesday, the FMLN released a statement commemorating Funes, highlighting his former role as an investigative journalist and his substantial public support during his presidency. Current Labor Minister Rolando Castro acknowledged Funes’ contributions to journalism while also recognizing the missteps he made in office.
Born in San Salvador on October 18, 1959, Funes began his career as a teacher in Catholic institutions. He later gained recognition as a war correspondent and hosted a popular interview show that addressed contentious issues. His tenure with CNN from 1991 to 2007 earned him several accolades and honed his reputation as a journalist.
When the FMLN approached him to run for president, he won the 2009 election against Rodrigo Ávila of the conservative National Republican Alliance (Arena), which had held power since 1989. Funes was viewed as a refreshing choice, portraying a less confrontational image in contrast to the party’s past connections to the civil war.
Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez lauded Funes for his tenacity and willingness to confront the pressing issues of El Salvador. However, by the end of his term, Funes was engulfed in allegations of corruption and fled to Nicaragua in 2016, claiming he was a victim of political persecution.
An absentia trial resulted in six convictions against him for various acts of corruption. His most recent sentence came in May 2023, where he received a 14-year prison term for orchestrating a truce with gangs to reduce violent crime during his presidency in exchange for benefits to imprisoned gang leaders. Just a year earlier, he was handed an eight-year sentence related to receiving a plane as a kickback for awarding a bridge construction contract. He also faces allegations of misappropriating approximately $351 million in public funds.
Several of Funes’ former officials, including his ex-wife Vanda Pignato, and other associates have faced similar corruption prosecutions. Additionally, his former security minister was sentenced to 18 years for his involvement in the controversial gang truce negotiations.
Despite the controversies surrounding Funes, his party achieved another victory with Salvador Sánchez Cerén, a former guerrilla commander, serving as president from 2014 to 2019. In recent times, Funes and current President Nayib Bukele have engaged in heated exchanges on social media platforms, particularly over Bukele’s aggressive campaigns against gang activity, amid accusations that he too had engaged with gang leaders in negotiations.
Ultimately, Funes’ legacy is a complicated tapestry of journalism, political struggle, and scandal, exhibiting the turbulence of El Salvador’s recent history.
