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- WORLD, Page 39World NotesEL SALVADORTurning the Tables
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- After a flurry of proposals and counterproposals, El
- Salvador was not an inch closer to peace. President Jose
- Napoleon Duarte, whose Christian Democrats are trailing in the
- polls, took the diplomatic initiative last week by calling for
- talks with the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front
- (F.M.L.N.) and offering to postpone for six weeks the
- presidential elections scheduled for March 19. The army also
- unilaterally declared a cease-fire until June 1.
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- The F.M.L.N., which wants the elections delayed until Sept.
- 15, called Duarte's offer for talks "positive" but criticized
- the cease-fire as unworkable. To underscore their point, rebel
- forces on Thursday attacked San Ramon, a town on the outskirts
- of San Salvador, killing three soldiers and two civilians
- before making their escape. The incident was the first serious
- guerrilla assault on the capital.
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- U.S. officials are lending quiet encouragement to
- peacemaking efforts, but deep political divisions and
- intransigence in El Salvador threaten to stop the latest push.
- The right-wing ARENA party rejected any delay in the election.
- And the rebels have hinted that if no talks are held soon, they
- will resume the war with greater intensity.
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