French Filmmaker Christian Poveda Shot Dead In El Salvador, Police Suspect Mara 18 Involvement
3 September 2009, 9:32 AM. By Alex Alvarez
French documentary filmmaker Christian Poveda recently found himself the center of controversy as a result of a movie he’d made about a Salvadoran street gang. That controversy may have resulted in his death.
Poveda, 52, was found shot in the head after, police say, attempting to drive out from La Campanera, an area overrun by members of the Mara 18 street gang. He was evidently ambushed and executed in Tonacatepeque, a rural town not far from San Salvador.
Authorities believe Poveda was targeted by gang members, possibly as a result of anger over his film La Vida Loca, which focused on Mara 18’s members. Poveda’s film, however, while not shying away from the acts of violence committed by the gang, was critical of police crackdowns, arguing that these did not work as a lasting, preventative measure in areas where poverty and desperation led to young men and women seeking protection and community in gangs.
El Salvador’s new president, former guerrilla member Mauricio Funes, publicly denounced the killing.
Click Below for Images of the Mara 18 Gang
Controversial French filmmaker Christian Poveda shot dead in El Salvador [The Times]
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i feel horrible for his family …jeez but why was he in this particular area if he was aware that they were mad at him?
also i find face tattoos absolutely fascinating ever since i found out about the Maori in new zealand..
I saw the film in Chiapas in March when he presented this documentary, and I also spoke with him afterwards about his work. What struck me was his personal involvement with the gang members, he helped them out and visited them after the film was over, his kindness to them was evident though he was modest about this, and he was extremely sad when he told us that most of the people in the film were dead. This is tragic.
This really sucks. This really scares me when it comes to documentaries, etc.
Our presidente Mauricio Funes -as left-wing as he is- was not a member of the guerilla. He is a former journalist. That mistake you made made me scream out loud. Please further investigate and fact-check so this ind of mistakes don’t happenn.
*kind of mistakes don’t happen.