Surf’s up in El Salvador, but the locals are down
Recasting Isla Tasajera as a surfing destination won’t help locals who are fighting to prove land ownership
Isla Tasajera — A long the coast of El Salvador, about an hour-and-a-half drive from the capital, lies a pristine beach with towering waves that are uncharted by all but a few surfers savvy enough to have found the remote community of Isla Tasajera.
The 2,000 fishermen and their families who live there, most in small homes made of tree trunks and tin roofs, rarely ride the waves. Instead, they pass their days catching shrimp, tilapia and sharks. “We don’t have surfboards,” said Leonardo Funes, president of the local community development association (Adesco). “There is interest [in surfing], but no resources.”..
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