TUESDAY, MARCH 03, 2009

Nicaragua Network Hotline (March 3, 2009)

1. Rival marches result in clashes
2. Renewal of aid uncertain
3. Accusations of corruption past and present
4. OAS seeks world help to eliminate Nicaraguan land mines
5. Literacy Campaign advances
6. Community Movement receives UN recognition

Topic 1: Rival marches result in clashes

Rival marches in several cities resulted in clashes requiring police intervention on Feb. 28. A coalition calling itself Citizens United for Democracy (UCD) which has been accused of accepting money from the US Embassy, organized marches to protest alleged fraud in the Nov. 9, 2008 municipal elections. The marches were also supported by opposition political parties. The National Workers Front (FNT), affiliated with the governing Sandinista Party (FSLN) organized rival gatherings as what they announced would be part of the kick-off to celebrate of the 30th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution in July. There were clashes in several cities, including Managua, Chinandega and Leon, but the gatherings proceeded smoothly in Masaya and Jinotega.

In Managua, an estimated one to three thousand protesters marched to the National Assembly. Even though they changed their route to avoid contact with FNT demonstrators gathered at a traffic circle, a stone throwing altercation occurred. The exchange lasted about twenty minutes until anti-riot police brought it to a halt. One rock broke the leg of a Sandinista participant and others received minor injuries. Many of the opposition marchers disbursed but others continued to the National Assembly where Azalia Solis of the Autonomous Women's Movement read a demand to recount votes in at least ten municipalities. Signatures claimed by organizers to number 130,000 asking “Where is My Vote?” were turned over to defeated Managua mayoral candidate Eduardo Montealegre.

Gonzalo Carrion of the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights complained that police had promised protection if the marchers changed their route and they should have prevented the violence which he said was started by the Sandinista supporters. He accused Ortega of governing “not like a head of state but like the leader of a gang.” Riot police prevented FNT demonstrators from following the opposition march to the National Assembly.

In Chinandega, opposition National Assembly Deputy Luis Callejas was briefly hospitalized after he was hit in the head by a stone. Sandinista supporter Benjamin Urrutia lost an eye when he was hit by a rock. Eight other people were injured as well. The Police detained five people involved in the violence. In Leon, demonstrators were blocked from marching beyond the San Juan Plaza by large groups of Sandinistas. UCD organizers accused the police of having “sold out” to the Sandinistas because officers said they could not guarantee the security of the marchers if they left the area. In Masaya, 300 people marched without incident, and in Jinotega, police protected the opposition marchers throughout the entire route and there was only a short clash at the end which authorities broke up with tear gas.

Topic 2: Renewal of aid uncertain

Central Bank President Atenor Rosales said on Mar. 2 that he had no doubt that donor countries would renew their aid to Nicaragua given that they are aware of the government's struggle against poverty. Last week, Foreign Minister Samuel Santos said that he believed that the United States and the European Union will renew their suspended aid programs. On March 11 the board of the Millennium Challenge Corporation will decide whether to release the remaining US$64 million in Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) aid. Santos said that the Nicaraguan government has held talks with Obama administration officials about MCA aid. “We have been having a dialogue with them; there is no conflict over this,” Santos said. However, presidential economic advisor Bayardo Arce was not so certain. “I'm not sure that they are going to lift the block on the aid and in the end a success for the country, given how many people have been pushing them to end it, might be that it continue as it is [suspended but not cancelled].” On Feb. 27 National Assembly President Rene Nuñez met with MCA officials. He said canceling the aid would not damage the government of Nicaragua but rather the thousands of citizens in the departments of Leon and Chinandega who had benefited from the program. The United Nations Development Program representative in Nicaragua, Alfredo Missair, said, “We have to look to the future; what occurred in the past or didn't occur is something that cannot be undone; rather what is done is done for good or ill.” His statement was well received by the Ortega government but opposition groups were furious.

Topic 3: Accusations of corruption past and present

The Public Ministry, on Feb. 20, accused 41 officials of the Bolaños government (2001-2006) of embezzlement, misuse of funds, fraud, document falsification, and racketeering. Among those accused were officials of the Rural Development Institute, the Health Ministry, mayors' offices, the Transportation Ministry, and the state-owned water company ENACAL, among others. The total embezzled, according to Attorney General Julio Centeno, came to close to US$5 million. On Feb. 24, special criminal prosecutor Cesar Guevara said that the Prosecutor General's office will charge additional former government officials this week.

Accusations of corruption by current officials have also become common. La Prensa has been publishing reports of nepotism and political hiring in the judicial branch along accusations of employees who do not come to work but receive “juicy” salaries. Prosecutor Delia Rosales explained that there are legal prohibitions against hiring close relatives in the same institution. Prosecutor Rodrigo Zambrana said that influence peddling “constitutes the crime of corruption” as does receiving a salary without performing any work.

The opposition press has also been crying corruption in the case of the purchase by the company Alba Food Products of Nicaragua (ALBALINISA) of a Managua hotel and two cattle ranches on the Chiltepe Peninsula from the North American Seminole Tribe for a reported price of between US$9 and 10 million. ALBALINISA is part of the ALBA Group along with ALBANISA which purchases petroleum from Venezuela under concessional repayment conditions. The accusations stem from the fact that both companies are private and board members and managers are close to the FSLN and the government of President Daniel Ortega. El Nuevo Diario said that the formation of new businesses such as those in the ALBA Group has one goal: “to manage in a confusing and clandestine fashion the funds from the oil arrangements [with Venezuela] for the enrichment of some.” Presidential economic advisor Bayardo Arce said that ALBALINISA is the company that carries out the export of food products such as meat, milk and basic grains to Venezuela as part of the ALBA agreement.

Topic 4: OAS seeks world help to eliminate Nicaraguan land mines

The Organization of American States (OAS) on Wednesday asked the international community to help complete the removal of all landmines from Nicaragua this year. The call was made by Christopher Hernandez-Roy, director of the OAS Department of Public Security at the kick-off of a regional meeting with the title “Advances and Challenges to Achieving a Latin America Free of Antipersonnel Mines.” He noted that Nicaragua has completed 98% of its plan for landmine removal and that he can see a time when all Central America is free of landmines. The conference was attended by representatives of the 33 countries that signed the Ottawa Convention ten years ago to work to end the manufacture and use of mines. The OAS is assisting Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Nicaragua in the location and removal of anti-personnel mines. Hernandez-Roy said that Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Surinam are already free of mines in compliance with the Ottawa Convention.

Topic 5: Literacy Campaign advances

The National Literacy Campaign, initiated by the government of President Daniel Ortega, has seen great advances against the literacy losses suffered due to the “16 year abandonment” by previous governments according to Minister of Education Miguel de Castilla. As an example, the municipality of Santa Rosa del Peñon, in the department of Leon some 110 miles from Managua, had a 42% illiteracy rate in 2007. Recently illiteracy in Santa Rosa fell to 3.9%, below the figure established by the UN for an area to be free of illiteracy which is 5%. The goal is for Nicaragua to be declared illiteracy free by the July 19 thirtieth anniversary of the triumph of the Sandinista Revolution.

In related news, bricklayers constructing a warehouse at the Ministry of Education discovered a buried plaque that hung at the entrance of the National Literacy Museum during the 1980s. The marble plaque was broken into four pieces making it impossible to repair. “This plaque presided over the entrance to the National Literacy Museum that was in Las Palmas. After the FSLN lost the 1990 elections, the new government not only closed the museum but burned, lost or threw out all its contents,” said Minister Castilla. He said the plaque would be displayed at the new Literacy Museum which will feature both the original and current literacy campaigns.

Topic 6: Community Movement receives UN recognition

The Nicaraguan Community Movement MCN) received the United Nations Population Award, the UN Population Fund announced on Feb. 25. The Community Movement and an Egyptian doctor, Mahmud Fathalla, won the award from among a pool of 18 nominees worldwide. UNFPA said that the Community Movement received the award due to its work since 1978 to better the quality of life in its country through “communitarian social development, gender equality, and protection of the environment.” MCN has a presence in 120 municipalities and 2,000 communities in the country enabling it to mobilize 20,000 volunteers to provide health and education services, according to the UNFPA communiqué.

The UNFPA recognized MCN's recent work with youth in the promotion of gender equality, the eradication of violence, the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, and the reduction in the number of adolescent pregnancies. Enrique Picado, long-time director of the MCN, said that he was very proud of the recognition. “It is very important to acknowledge the more than 15,000 health brigadistas who have made it possible for the Community Movement to carry out the different projects in our country and to provide the power to help the population. Receiving this prize from an organization as important as the UN is a success, because it affirms our collective efforts.”

This hotline is prepared from the Nicaragua News Service and other sources. To receive a more extensive weekly summary of the news from Nicaragua by e-mail or postal service, send a check for $60.00 to Nicaragua Network, 1247 E St., SE, Washington, DC 20003. We can be reached by phone at 202-544-9355. Our web site is: www.nicanet.org. To subscribe to the Hotline, send an e-mail to nicanet@afgj.org.
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