la matanza

The term "la matanza" refers to a brutal event in El Salvador's history. In January 1932, farmworkers organized a two-day revolt led by Agustín Farabundo Martí, head of the Salvadoran Communist Party. General Maximiliano Hernández Martínez, who had seized the presidency in a coup the previous year, easily suppressed the rebellion. He authorized the execution of at least 10,000 suspected participants.12

This event, known as la matanza (meaning "the slaughter"), was significant for several reasons. It reinforced the power of the military dictatorship for the landed elite, who became fearful of communist revolution. It also eliminated the immediate threat from the left and suppressed much of the remaining Indigenous culture in the country. The military governments that followed controlled El Salvador until 1979.12