TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 03, 2009
Nicaragua Network Hotline (November 3, 2009)
1. Reelection controversies continue: Sandinistas assail Callahan while Liberals fail to unite2. IMF approval of economic program revisions will release US$36 million
3. Hydroelectric and wind power projects in the works
4. New poll shows positive opinion about government programs
5. FAO commends National Assembly for food sovereignty law
6. Basic Basket prices remain stable
Topic 1: Reelection controversies continue: Sandinistas assail Callahan while Liberals fail to unite
The Nicaraguan government said on Nov. 2 that it would not declare US Ambassador Robert Callahan persona non grata, but his continued tenure will depend on “his political behavior” according to a statement on Nov. 2 by Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Manuel Coronel. Callahan angered many Sandinistas last week when he called the decision of the Supreme Court to remove term limits for president and mayors, “unlawful, hurried, and secret.” On Oct. 29, the government had released a communiqué calling Callahan's statements “interventionist” and “unacceptable.” National Assembly Deputy and head of the National Workers Front (FNT) Gustavo Porras and Supreme Court Justice Francisco Rosales, who chaired the Constitutional Panel of the Court that ruled to allow reelection, had demanded that he be declared persona non grata and be expelled.
Government supporters demonstrated at the Central American University (UCA), at the National Assembly, and in front of the US Embassy Oct. 30-31, demanding Callahan's ouster. Coronel called Callahan's remarks "a political blunder from one who does not measure his words." But, he described commercial and military relations with the United States as “good” despite tensions over claims of fraud in last November's municipal elections and the recent Supreme Court ruling. Nicaragua has not had an ambassador in the United States since the departure of Arturo Cruz last February.
On Oct. 27, opposition members of the National Assembly failed to achieve a quorum to consider a bill proposed to annul the Supreme Court ruling. Only 42 deputies appeared out of a necessary 47. The opposition deputies had hoped to void both the court ruling and the year old municipal elections. The next day, deputies attended the session to receive a commendation from the United Nations on World Food Day, but only the 38 Sandinistas registered as present. Liberal deputies said they would boycott the Assembly until the bill to annul the Oct. 19 court ruling was put on the agenda. The leadership of the Assembly met later that day but the opposition's bill did not end up on the agenda because Third Secretary Alejandro Ruiz of the Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance (ALN) abstained from voting on the agenda at the last minute. That may have been because the ALN does not want to give up the four municipalities it won in the Nov. 2008 election.
Mario Valle Davila, a deputy from the Nicaraguan Unity Bench (BUN), said that both the Supreme Court ruling and the bill the opposition wishes to pass in the Assembly are examples of the illegality into which the country has fallen. “I believe that the court exceeded its powers but I also believe that the Assembly is trying to exercise powers it does not have because the constitution says that the rulings of the Supreme Court must be complied with,” Valle said. President Ortega followed the example of Nobel Peace Prize winner, Costa Rican President Oscar Arias who recently gained the right to run for a second term my making the same case to his country's Supreme Court. It also ruled term limits to be a violation of a fundamental right of the people to vote for the candidate of their choice.
Topic 2: IMF approval of economic program revisions will release US$36 million
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved the second and third revisions of the government's economic program which will permit the immediate release of US$36 million in loans for 2009 general budget support. The IMF approval will also release funds from other financial institutions such as the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank totaling at least US$88 million.
Central Bank President Antenor Rosales said that the approval demonstrates the responsibility and seriousness with which the Sandinista government has dealt with the macroeconomic stability of the country. Rosales said that while the Nicaraguan economy has been affected by the global financial crisis, the commitment of the government to macroeconomic stability and maintaining prudent policies has permitted conclusion of the budget revisions and given Nicaragua access to additional international resources for economic growth, generation of jobs, and reduction of poverty. He said this is the first time IMF loans have been used for budget support. He added, “These resources are to implement government plans and programs in the social sphere such as health, education, and infrastructure.”
Topic 3: Hydroelectric and wind power projects in the works
A committee from the National Assembly composed of Eliseo Nuñez and Francisco Sacasa (both from the Liberal Party) met in Bluefields with the Regional Council of the South Atlantic Autonomous Region to explain the Tumarin Hydroelectric Project on the Rio Grande de Matagalpa. Nuñez told the Council, “We cannot continue to depend on fossil fuels and international aid, nor can we continue to permit the expenditure of funds to buy hydrocarbons abroad.” He went on to say, “That is why Tumarin is necessary because it will generate 200 megawatts of electricity which represents 40% of the energy consumption of the country.”
Nuñez said that the project would have an enormous impact, noting, “With relation to the zone where the dam would be located, it would mean bringing globalization to a poor region that for the first time would have satellite communication, health care, and transportation via the highway that will be built by the government from Rio Blanco to San Pedro del Norte and from there to Tumarin.”
Alejandro Mejia, a member of the regional council, agreed that the project was important and he said that he anticipated unanimous approval by the RAAS Regional Council. However, there is suspicion and opposition on the part of some people in the region who live on the banks of the Rio Grande de Matagalpa and who fear being displaced by the dam and becoming homeless. Nuñez said that the 1,200 people who would need to be moved would have a choice between two alternatives. The government could build them a town (now being designed, he said, by Roger Solorzano) with a school and health center or they could individually be compensated for their houses and/or properties.
In other energy news, last week, Energy Minister Emilio Rappaccioli announced that the Ministry of Energy and Mines had reached an agreement with the company Eolo, S.A. and the international consortium Amayo, S.A. for wind power generating projects in the Department of Rivas. Rappaccioli said that the Amayo Consortium would expand a wind project into its second phase which would provide 23 megawatts of energy. Then, Eolo, S.A., would install a wind plant in the same zone (Rivas) that would generate 37 megawatts of electricity. Rappaccioli said that together the plants would generate 60 megawatts of wind power.
Topic 4: New poll shows positive opinion about government programs
The company Siglo Nuevo Consulting released a new poll on Oct. 27 which, according to company head Tomas Valdez, showed that 32.1% of Managua residents felt that the government's measures to deal with the economic crisis, maintain employment levels and social programs was “good,” 37.8% said efforts were satisfactory and 27.5% said they were unsatisfactory. The poll showed that 22.75% of Managuans thought that the economic situation in the country was good, 39.7% said satisfactory and 37.3% bad. While 24.2% surveyed said their economic situation had improved this year, 43.6% said their situation was the same as last year, and 31.7% said they were worse off than last year.
The poll indicated that 50% believed that the government had made advances in the struggle against hunger, illiteracy and poverty; 21% said that it had not and 27% said “more or less.” Sixty-seven per cent said the government had done a good job in confronting the H1N1 flu virus.
Forty-three per cent of respondents said they sympathized with the Sandinista Party, 14.3% with the Constitutional Liberal Party (PLC), 4% with the “Let's Go with Eduardo” Movement [of Eduardo Montealegre], and 1.9% with the Sandinista Renovation Movement. However, 32.2% declared themselves independents. When asked which party identified with the poor, 52.9% said the Sandinista Party, 30.5% answered “no party,” and 9.8% said the PLC.
Forty-three percent of those polled said that the Supreme Court ruling allowing sequential presidential reelection was “correct” (exactly the same percentage who said they sympathized with the Sandinista Party) while 29.5% said it was “incorrect” and 23.5% said “more or less.” A slightly higher percentage (42.8%) said they would vote for President Daniel Ortega's reelection.
Topic 5: FAO commends National Assembly for food sovereignty law
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) commended the Nicaraguan National Assembly on Oct. 27 for passing the Food Security and Sovereignty Law. The commendation was given during a special session of the Assembly on World Food Day. FAO representative, Gero Vaagt, thanked the delegates for passing the law which, according to National Assembly President Rene Nuñez, had been before the body for two years. Walmaro Gutierrez, chair of the Assembly's Economic Committee, stated that passage of the law obligates the government to implement policies and actions to insure food security.
Funds for national food production will be provided through the national budget. The law creates a National Commission for Food Sovereignty and Security, presided over by the President of the Republic, to direct the use of the funds. Among its priorities is to assure that the national system produces enough to cover national consumption in order to avoid foreign dependence. A cooperation accord between the FAO and Nicaragua was signed following the session.
Topic 6: Basic Basket prices remain stable
Local merchants predict that the cost of the “basic basket” of goods [Nicaragua's measure of the cost of living] will remain stable through the end of the year although some product prices will rise during the holiday season. Rice, beans and cooking oil will remain stable for the traditional gallo pinto rice and beans dish, said Jose Alvarez, a vendor at Managua's Roberto Huembes market. According to Amaru Suarez, that is not true of all products. Observers noted that normally some prices rise in the last two months of the year, citing potatoes, pork, and some vegetables as examples.
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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