Evening star., 1932-03-06
BY GASTON NERVAL.

~ ECENT occurrences IN cOnnectlon
with Central American politics
TX give encouraging indications OF
Il the progress of democratic in
stitutions in that part of the
! world. They will serve to show skep-
tical observers that a change for the
better has really taken place in the
ways OF tropical politics.
The events of the past few weeks in
El Salvador and Costa Rica bear evil
dence of the fact, repeatedly mentioned
in these columns, that the Central
American peoples are definitely nearing
their political maturity. They show
that the old-fashioned, treacherous
methods of yesterday are TO longer
successful in domestic politics and
that the movements for purely personal,
selfish ambitions can no longer COM
'mand popular support down there.
When an internal rebellion broke out
last month in El Salvador, with alleged
communistic aims, the large majority
of the Salvadorean people rallied to the
support of the government and helped
the authorities energetically to squelch
the movement. The financial and
moral aid of the most important classes
facilitated and made possible the early
restoration of internal peace. And all
this in spite of the fact that the gov
ernment of Vice President Martinez
had been in power only a few weeks
after the resignation of President
Araujo, and had not even been ac-
corded recognition by the neighboring
countries nor by the United States
Some years ago this circumstance would
have been sufficient to insure the sue
cess of any rebellious attempt and per-
haps to plunge the country in anarchy.
Support Of Organized Government.
This time, instead, the so-called COM
nlunistic uprising only served to con-
Solidate the position of the established
government and win for it the open
popular support which until then it had
only partially enjoyed. Such being the
case, the reader will probably be at a
loss to understand why the Salvadorean
government is still denied recognition
by the other Central American govern
mentS and by the United States.
The explanation is simple. The pres
ent authorities of El Salvador may have
all the popular support that their
friends clailn-which Is today very
likely, after the communistic fracas-
but that does not dismiss the fact that
there are standing treaties, international
agreements, which prevent such recog-
milton. In any country other than a
Central American one the fact that
the government has the backing Of the
people and is able to maintain order
and protect international obligations
should suffice to win foreign recogni-
ton for such government. I have con-
sistently condemned here the Wilsonian
theory of non-recognition, not long
abandoned by Secretary StimSon, which
amounted more or less to a passing
ternal problems of the Latin American
counties.
Condemns Nom Recognition Policy.
Denying them the right to revolution
the so-called Wilson policy of nom
recognition in effect denied the Latin
Americans the right to self-government,
which is an inalienable and funda-
mental condition of their sovereignty
as independent states. In accordance
with this sentiment, prevailing through
out the Southern Hemisphere, / have
also been emphatic in praising the re-
versal of the State Department to the
old Jeffersonian principle of recogni-
ton, as announced last year by Secre-
tary Stimson.
He declared that "any government
which is the expression of popular will,
is able to assure internal order and
protection to foreign lives and property
will be recognized by the United
States"
This is the only reasonable policy, at
least the only one consistent with the
sovereignty and self-respect Of the
Latin American nations. But IN the
case of a Central American state the
situation is quite different.
There Is a special treaty among the
Central American republics repudiating
violence as a means to attain power.
BY this treaty the Central American
countries voluntarily bind themselves
not to recognize any regime which is
not set UP by legal methods and-which
is even more important in this particu-
lar caSe-not to recognize as the head
of such new regime any one connected
with the revolt which brought it about
or with the cabinet Of the President
thus overthrown.
The Central American Agreement.
And there is a tacit unwritten agree
ment between the United States and
the Central American nations that the
former will also follow the policy en-
Eodied in that treaty, even If not a
party to it.
These. as I have said before, are
treaty stipulations which leave no doubt
as to the way to be followed Good or
bad, they are now in full force and must
be observed. From the point of view of
the Salvadoreans, the government Of
Gen. Martinez may be perfectly legal
in fact, 1t is SO, for the constitution of