Nicaragua Network

1. World Court issues provisional measures that favor Costa Rica
2. Assembly committee completes hearings on proposed constitutional amendments
3. Twentieth victim dies of dengue
4. Plan Roof benefits 3,200 families in Managua’s District Two
5. Microfinance sector grows 15% over last year
6. Free Trade Zone exports grow by 8%
7. Archaeologists discover ancient remains at Monkey Point
______________________________________________________

1. World Court issues provisional measures that favor Costa Rica

On Nov. 22, the International Court of Justice at The Hague (World Court) issued new provisional measures in the dispute between Costa Rica and Nicaragua over the San Juan River.  The Court said that there was a threat of possible damage to the interests of Costa Rica and ordered Nicaragua to remove all civilian, military and police personnel from the zone in dispute and assure that no one enters the area. The Court referred specifically to the Guardabarranco Environmental Movement whose members maintained a presence in the area.  It also ordered that dredging of river channels in the area must cease and that one particular trench must be refilled.  Nicaragua’s representative to the Court Carlos Argüello said that President Daniel Ortega had already ordered an end to the dredging and the Court merely ordered Nicaragua to do what it had already said it was ready to do.  “Nicaragua went in where it shouldn’t have, that’s the truth,” Argüello said.  One legal expert, Alberto Aleman, said that Eden Pastora, who was specifically mentioned in the Court ruling, was not the best person to put in charge of the dredging being a person with “zero diplomatic skills.”

Argüello explained that these were provisional measures and that “the principal case continues its course.” Costa Rica has challenged Nicaragua’s ownership of a tiny triangle of land at the mouth of the San Juan River which the Nicaraguans call Harbour Head.  And Nicaragua has challenged Costa Rica’s construction of a 160 kilometer-long road along the southern bank of the river which has led to substantial erosion of sediment into the river.  Arguments continue before the Court in the case of the road and a ruling on the Harbour Head issue will probably not be issued until 2015. 

An official statement was released that same day saying that the Nicaraguan government, “in continuity with its historical attitude of respect for the rulings of the International Court of Justice and in respect for the international community, will faithfully comply with the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice.”  Costa Rica’s Foreign Minister Enrique Castillo said, “Costa Rica receives with approval the pronouncement from the Court which has supported our denunciations of the violations of the provisional measures of 2011 committed by Nicaragua.”  (Informe Pastran, Nov. 22; http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/150/17772.pdf; El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 23; La Prensa, Nov. 22)

2. Assembly committee completes hearings on proposed constitutional amendments

The special National Assembly committee considering President Daniel Ortega’s proposed amendments to the Nicaraguan constitution heard from 20 organizations, government offices, political parties, and churches in a process of consultation that began on Nov. 8 and ended on Nov. 23. For details about the amendments themselves,please see the Nicaragua News Bulletin for Nov. 12, 2013, at http://www.nicanet.org/?page=blog&id=23443.In declarations to the media, Sandinista-dominated unions supported the amendments while opposition-leaning unions opposed the changes.  The Constitutional Liberal Party expressed strong opposition as did the Independent Liberal Party (PLI) with the exception of Article 131. That amendment, which the PLI said it supports, would mandate that National Assembly Deputies who abandoned the party on whose slate they were elected would lose their seats in the Assembly.  Leaders of the Conservative Party and of Yatama expressed their support for the amendments. Assembly of God churches supported the amendments while other Protestant churches in the Evangelical Alliance opposed them. 

In a press statement, the US Department of State said, “We are following very closely the constitutional measures proposed by President Ortega and his administration.  We are concerned that steps that concentrate power and undermine checks and balances will be harmful to democracy and could hurt the long-term economic development so important to the Nicaraguan people.  We continue to support a free, secure, and democratic Nicaragua that respects the rule of law, human rights, transparency, and broad citizen participation.  We hope that the government and all sectors of Nicaraguan society can discuss fully the meaning of these proposals and their long-term potential impact on Nicaragua’s democracy and prosperity.” 

On Nov. 21, leaders of the Superior Council on Private Enterprise (COSEP) and its president, Adan Aguerri, testified before the committee and urged extreme caution in passing amendments “that are going to affect the future of Nicaraguans.” They expressed a concern that the amendments could “create economic uncertainty that could take us in a direction contrary to the objectives achieved to date.”  Aguerri said that popular participation by means of the different direct democracy institutions that would be created should be nonpartisan and that the branches of government should be independent from the executive. He reiterated COSEP’s position against military and police officers holding government offices that are normally held by civilians.  COSEP leaders said that before amending the constitution Nicaragua needed a new electoral law and the naming of new officials to fill expired posts.  They asked for an organism independent of the Supreme Electoral Council to issue voter identification cards, indicating that this would help guarantee free and fair elections.

The consultations ended on Nov. 22 with a statement from the Catholic Bishops Conference read to the committee by Monsignor Carlos Aviles, vicar of the archdiocese of Managua.  The statement said, “We consider that the proposed amendments to the constitution, seen as a whole, are oriented toward favoring the establishment of an absolute power for the long term, exercised by a person or a party in a dynastic form or by means of a political and economic oligarchy.” But the bishops were equally hard on the opposition, referring to “the so-called political opposition that debates in internal struggles, undermining each other without representing any alternative for the country.” The statement said that any changes to the constitution should be preceded by a “vast process of consultation without excluding anyone and without this inexplicable hurry.”  The bishops concluded by saying, “Our contribution in the political field is not intended to do more than serve the formation of political consciences and contribute to the perceiving of the truths demanded by justice.”

Informe Pastran noted that, while a number of opponents of the amendments have spoken of the possibility of a family dynasty, the proposed amendments do not change the prohibition of family members succeeding themselves in the presidency.  Meanwhile, Sandinista Deputy Alba Palacios, committee chairwoman, said that the committee would now begin consultation and would make changes that would “improve” the package of amendments based on the testimony of the witnesses who have appeared before it. (Informe Pastran, Nov. 20, 21, 22; La Prensa, Nov. 20, 22; El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 23; http://nicaragua.usembassy.gov/pr_131122_statement_on_constitutional_reforms.html)

3. Twentieth victim dies of dengue

Government Communications Coordinator Rosario Murillo reported that an eight year old boy who died on Nov. 24 in Diriomo was Nicaragua’s 20^th victim of dengue.  She said that 8,012 people in Nicaragua have been made sick by the disease, which she said had diminished somewhat in recent days.  The country remains under red alert while abatement activities are constant and ongoing. There are some Managua neighborhoods that do not have water all day and many households in those neighborhoods store water in containers which can serve as sites for the mosquito that carries the disease to lay its eggs.  Experts called on residents to keep the containers clean and covered.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) reported that Central Americans are fighting four different dengue viruses.  According to the Gorgas Institute for Health Studies, which organized the Second International Meeting for the Control of the Aedes Aegypti Mosquito in Panama last week, there have been 107,000 people affected by the illness in Central America with Costa Rica in the front with 46,799 cases, followed by Honduras with 35,215.  Honduras has had the most deaths from dengue with 27, followed by Nicaragua with 20. There have been 311 confirmed cases of hemorrhagic dengue in the region, including 143 in El Salvador and 136 in Costa Rica.   The conference was attended by health officials from Latin American countries and from PAHO and focused on strategies for forming public-private alliances to combat the epidemic. (La Prensa, Nov. 24; Radio La Primerisima, Nov. 24; El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 23; Informe Pastran, Nov. 22)

4. Plan Roof benefits 3,200 families in Managua’s District Two

Last week, 400 families in Managua’s District Two benefited from a delivery of materials from the program “Plan Roof,” which has improved the living conditions of thousands of residents across the country. According to an official report, District Two has received materials for a total of 3,200 roofs – that is 32,000 sheets of galvanized roofing.

This figure is added to the overall registry in the capital, which totals 180,000 sheets delivered in the seven districts of Managua. Enrique Armas Rosales, Deputy Mayor of Managua, noted that the situation in District Two warranted an additional delivery of roofing since the demand was large and the need great. Fulfilling that request, roofing sheets were delivered to residents of the District’s 40 barrios. Most of the recipients are people with few economic resources. The low-income recipients were saved the approximate cost of US$200 for ten sheets of roofing. (Radio La Primerísima, Nov. 20)

5. Microfinance sector grows 15% over last year

The Association of Microfinance Institutions (ASOMIF) celebrated its fifteenth anniversary with several events that marked the growth and success of the sector in the last several years.  The microfinance sector will close 2013 with loans made to 268,881 borrowers for a total value of US$182,473, a growth of 15% over last year. Currently, the 21 microfinance institutions active in Nicaragua make 50% of their loans in the areas of commerce and services in urban areas and only 30% of the loans currently go to the agriculture sector.  However, ASOMIF president Fernando Guzman said that he wants to see a return to the period when most loans were made to farmers, before the world economic crisis affected Nicaragua and farmers couldn’t pay their loans, giving rise to the so-called “Won’t Pay Movement.”

One of the events marking the anniversary was the release on Nov. 21 of the ASOMIF study entitled “Microfinance Organizations and Gender: Findings on Economic and Patriarchal Violence.  The study indicated that some women make use of microfinance loans in ways reflecting the domination of a male partner, including with the permission of their partners, hidden from their partners, or as simple intermediaries to obtain the money for their partners. These situations will be presented as a drama by the Tecum Umani Campesino Theater  Company on November 28 in Managua.

Rural women in Nicaragua make up 23% of the farmers in the country, some 60,893 in total.  However, they obtain less credit and technical training than the men.  The departments with the greatest numbers of women farmers are Matagalpa with 6,276, Jinotega with 5,854, and Leon with 5,523. Lucy Valenti, president of the Network of Nicaraguan Businesswomen (REN) and coordinator of the Gender Commission of COSEP, said that women confront a number of obstacles to obtaining credit for their farms or businesses in spite of having better records for paying back their loans than the men.  “There is a series of tools that we must provide women so that they can grow and develop in a more competitive way in the market, and the lack of credit is a barrier to our further growth.” Patricia Lindo of the Association of Producers and Exporters of Nicaragua (APEN) said that microfinance institutions are the principle source of financing for women exporters because the banks require more guarantees.  However, she said some women prefer to work without credit because of the short timeline for paying back the loans.

For some micro, small or medium enterprises (MIPYMES), a micro finance loan can be the difference between success and failure. Ricardo Rodriguez is the owner of a small furniture factory in Tipitapa where he employs three people.  Thanks to a loan of US$3,000 he was able to increase production and hire six more people.  Carlos Pereira now employs ten people in his tailoring shop after a micro loan enabled him to buy more sewing machines.  On Dec. 6, ASOMIF will award prizes to those microfinance institutions that have been members of the association since the beginning.  There will also be events around the country.  (El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 21)

6. Free Trade Zone exports grow by 8%

Exports from garment factories in Nicaragua’s Free Trade Zones are expected to reach 1.5 billion pieces this year, a growth of 8% in comparison with 2012, according to Dean Garcia, director of the Nicaraguan Textile and Garment Industry Association (ANITEC).  Garcia said that the increase in the volume of exports is due to the recovery in the international economy and to diversification in the types of clothing assembled in Nicaragua. Nicaragua has been strong in sportswear, underwear, casual wear and is diversifying into business uniforms and women’s wear. Garcia said that these new products could mean the opening of new markets in Europe.  Last year FTZ exports registered an increase in volume of 7% over 2011. (Informe Pastran, Nov. 22)

7. Archaeologists discover ancient remains at Monkey Point

A team of archaeologists discovered a skeleton that could be from the oldest human found to date on the Caribbean coast, local press reported. A team of archeologists from the Bluefields Indian & Caribbean University (BICU) and from the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (UNAN) made the discovery. They calculated that the skeleton dates back more than four thousand years and corresponds to the first settlers of the region.

Sagrario Balladares, of the Archaeology Research Center of the UNAN, indicated that this is the first discovery of vestiges of this nature. “We are looking at the oldest human remains on the Caribbean coast, which must be between four and seven thousand years old, a date that will be confirmed once subjected to a Carbon 14 test.” Local authorities have requested that the universities make arrangements for the test which will be done outside the country, according to Gustavo Castro, Rector of BICU. Balladares said that the sex and age cannot be determined, but the person was part of a population that lived from fishing and hunting. The shell midden where the skeleton was found was discovered in 1972 but the human remains were left undiscovered until now. “The body was bent, facing east, with extended hands and with stones cradling the head,” said Balladares.  According to archeologist Leonardo Lechado, stone tools common at other sites in the region, including Kukra Hill and Pearl Lagoon, were also found. (Radio Primerisima, Managua, Nov. 22; La Prensa, Nov. 20)