1993 Photo Contest, Daily Life, 1st prize
Photographer

Larry Towell

Magnum Photos for The New York Times Magazine

01 January, 1991

Female FMLN members grieve over a fellow guerrilla killed by government forces, following fighting in the rural village of Guarjila. In January 1992, the government of El Salvador and the FMLN guerrilla movement signed a treaty to end the 12-year civil war which killed 70,000 and caused one million - a fifth of the total population - to flee the country. It was agreed that the FMLN would become a political party. Shortly before the signing of the peace treaty the army moved into Chalatenango, traditionally an FMLN-controlled area. Assisted by human rights organizations and church organizations, rebels returned to their homes, and the FMLN was being reformed in preparation for the 1994 general election. In the months before the peace treaty was signed, fighting intensified as the government and guerillas attempted to gain bargaining chips. Women and children mixed in the guerilla ranks.

About the photographer

Larry Towell

Larry Towell has worked for many years as a freelance Magnum photographer in areas of conflict and social unrest. His work has resulted in thirteen books, hundreds of journal pub...

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