Mauricio Funes

His wife is Wanda Pignato, who was once involved with the ‘Worker's Party’ in Brazil. His oldest son Alejandro Funes Velasco was killed in Paris while studying photography, at the age of 27.

Mauricio Funes was born October 18, 1959, in El Salvador. He was educated in Jesuit grade school before going on to study communications at the ‘Jesuit Universidad Centroamericana de José SimeónCañas’ (UCA). His Jesuit Catholic upbringing and leftist professors during his education set an early foundation for his political philosophies.

In August of 1980, Funes' older brother was killed by police in a student protest turned violent. This tragedy prompted him to leave his studies at university before completing his degree.

After leaving his university education, Funes did not immediately choose a political party or become involved in his country's ongoing civil war, despite his leftists leanings. Instead he began teaching literature classes for Catholic schools, with an emphasis on the audio-visual aspects of communication.

In 1986, Funes began his television journalism career with a spot as a reporter on the state education channel. Shortly thereafter he moved to ‘Channel 12’, an independently owned network known for its news coverage. During his time as a reporter for ‘Channel 12’ he interviewed many important Salvadoran political figures and became known for his support of leftist and working class interests.

In 1991, Funes worked with his sociology professor from his university days, a leftist activist named Francis Miguel Hasbún, to develop an audiovisual center and radio station at the UCA. During this time he reported for ‘Channel 12’ and was also a prominent Spanish language correspondent for the ‘Cable News Network’, and continued to rise in popularity as something of a leftist celebrity.

Although Funes' leftist coverage of Salvadoran politics made him popular with the people, he made many enemies in the right wing ‘National Republican Alliance’ (ARENA), which held power at the time. He was censored heavily and even received death threats.

In 2005, he was fired from his position with ‘Channel 12’, along with several other journalists. He continued to make journalistic television appearances on other channels, and his popularity expanded.

In his first year of presidency, Funes was called upon to respond to the devastations caused by the torrential rains of ‘Hurricane Ida’ in 2009, as well as earthquakes and volcanoes in the area.

His administration's efforts included public school rehabilitation and temporary lodgings in which refugees took shelter for over three months while entire communities were rebuilt or relocated.