International union and activist groups published an advertisment yesterday in a Salvadoran newspaper calling for an independent investigation into the death of a US union leader who was shot in the back while working there.
Mr Gilbert Soto, 49, a Teamster union member and US citizen of Salvadoran origin, was shot in the back on November 5th in front of his family's home in Usulutan.
His mother-in-law has been arrested and accused of hiring four people to kill him over a family dispute, but Mr Soto's family and many activist groups have said they believe his killing was related to his work.
The newspaper ad condemns Mr Soto's death as well as the November looting of the offices of El Salvador's Center for Labor Studies and Support, a watchdog group that reports labour rights abuses.
"All of these events are of concern because they are indicative of a deterioration of respect for human rights and labor rights in El Salvador," said the ad, signed by 35 US and Latin American groups.
Mr Soto was in El Salvador as part of a Central American tour that was to include stops in Honduras and Nicaragua to investigate working conditions and establish stronger ties with workers.
Days after his killing, Teamsters union President James P. Hoffa asked Secretary of State Colin Powell to pressure El Salvador to investigate the death, expressing concern that it was connected to his efforts to unionise port workers.
AP