15

How can the multiplication of Salvadorian organizations, foundations, or non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the late 80s be explained? What do these phenomena reveal about the changes at work within Central American activist networks? Referring to the testimonies of former executives of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) and former refugees discussing the evolution of the refugee communities, I will question the concept of “NGOization of social movements” used today to explain the growing number of Central American organizations. Staying away from an analysis in terms of “depoliticization”, I argue that the NGOization of social movements stems not from a delegitimization of social conflicts, but rather from the invention of a new style of support, which allows to maintain some ties of dependence in a context of greater equality. As a consequence, rather than a fragmentation of the lower classes, the NGOization implies the avoidance of these social classes.