TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2012

Nicaragua News Bulletin (August 28, 2012)

1. Crime stories dominate week's news
2. Jarquin out of mayor's race; OAS to observe elections
3. Regional police chiefs meet in Managua
4. New minimum wage agreement reached
5. More than 200 Managua young people leave gangs behind
6. Wave of tremblers hits Nicaragua
7. Authorities confiscate 25,000 turtle eggs

1. Crime stories dominate week's news

As the trial for drug trafficking of entertainment empresario Henry Fariñas and 23 others began in Managua last week, Nicaraguan authorities announced the arrest of 18 Mexicans who had entered the country disguised as television reporters supposedly to cover the Fariñas trial (or, as some speculated, to rescue or kill Fariñas). Fariñas is thought to have been the real target of an assassination attempt that instead killed Argentine singer Facundo Cabral in Guatemala on July 9, 2011.

Reports noted that both the Fariñas group and the Mexicans arrested last week were connected to the Mexican cartel known as Los Charros, part of the Michoacan Family, which has tentacles in Central America, using the isthmus as a route to move drugs to the United States. The Mexican television network TELEVISA confirmed that the 18 had no relationship to the TV network. The six vans in which the 17 men and one woman attempted to enter Nicaragua from Honduras carried the TELEVISA logo as did the shirts worn by the now detained travellers. Three of the vehicles had special compartments which contained 12 bags containing 563 packets of money, later confirmed to total over US$9 million. The National Police answered an anonymous tip that the vans were not what they seemed. Mexico's Foreign Ministry released a communiqué saying that Mexican officials were cooperating closely with Nicaragua on the case. An initial hearing for the alleged traffickers is scheduled for Sept. 5.

Managua Archbishop Leopoldo Brenes said that, “There is no doubt that drug trafficking could be a temptation because there is so much money and it can be gotten easily; nevertheless, I believe that we are one of the countries where the drug trafficking action is quite low. We see other larger countries with a larger budget for the police and they are truly plagued.” He added, “How interesting it would be if this money could be invested in the repair and building of schools, in primary education, and in hospitals.” Brenes was seconded by Juigalpa Bishop Rene Sandigo, head of the Nicaraguan Catholic Bishops' Conference, who added drug rehabilitation centers to the list of possible recipients of the US$9 million. Under current regulations, money taken in criminal cases goes to support the judicial system.

Meanwhile, in the trial of Fariñas and his 23 associates, on Aug. 26, the prosecution presented a hooded witness who said in a chilling testimony that a Nicaraguan from Rivas who served as a “mule,” carrying drugs for the cartel, “was divided in two with a chain saw,” after Fariñas accused him of losing a shipment. The witness added, “These things are normal among the drug organizaations, when they steal each other's merchandise or fail with a shipment. The boss blames the human ‘mule' and he pays the consequences. Many Nicaraguans have died that way in Guatemala.” Fariña's lawyer protested the testimony.

In other drug related news, the appeal by US citizen Jason Puracal and ten Nicaraguans of their drug trafficking convictions finished on Aug. 22 in Granada with Puracal saying, “I am one hundred percent innocent of what I am accused of. I have never sold, bought or used cocaine. I have never laundered money in any form and before November 11, 2010, I didn't know any of the other accused.” Puracal and the others were declared guilty on Sept. 6, 2011, of international transportation of drugs, money laundering, and illegal carrying of firearms and sentenced to between 10 and 26 years in prison. Puracal in particular was accused of using his Remax real estate franchise to launder money from drug deals. He received a sentence of 22 years. Among other evidence, the prosecution cited a boat with 400 kilos of cocaine that was recovered by police. The final ruling on the appeal by the three judge panel is due in early September. The Puracal case has been the focus of campaigns in the United States that proclaim Puracal's innocence and, in May, 43 members of the US Congress signed a letter to President Daniel Ortega asking for a review of the case. Representatives of the US embassy were present in the courtroom. Puracal was a Peace Corps volunteer. He is married to a Nicaraguan and they have one child. (El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 10, 16, 17, 22, 23, 25, 27; Informe Pastran, Aug. 22 24; La Prensa, Aug. 22, 24, 26; Radio La Primerisima, Aug. 22, 23, 24, 25)

2. Jarquin out of mayor's race; OAS to observe elections

The Supreme Electoral Council (CSE) announced on Aug. 27 that the Christian Democratic Union, the party of Managua mayoral candidate Agustin Jarquin, only presented complete lists of valid candidate names in 73% of the municipalities and thus would not be allowed to run in the Nov. 4 local elections. The minimum is 80%. Julio Acuña, director of Attention to Political Parties of the CSE, said that by the Aug. 15 deadline the party had only presented complete lists for 32% of the municipalities and was given more time. However, the party still did not meet the minimum by last week. The parties that made the minimum were the Sandinista Party (FSLN), the Independent Liberal Party (PLI), the Constitutional Liberal Party (PLC), the Conservative Party (PC), the National Liberal Alliance (ALN), the Alliance for the Republic (APRE), and Yatama (for the Atlantic Coast). The UDC had, until recently, been in alliance with the Sandinistas but broke away so that Agustin Jarquin could run for mayor after the Sandinista alliance chose current mayor Daisy Torres as its candidate.

In 1999, Jarquin, serving as Comptroller General, was jailed by then President Arnoldo Aleman for forcefully investigating the president for corruption. In reaction to Monday's CSE ruling, Jarquin said, “Technically we complied with the law. If they made the decision to remove us from the contest it would not be for strictly technical reasons but rather political ones.” He added, “We had tremendous support.” However, the CSE's Acuña said that at least 2,000 of the UDC's candidates did not present copies of their voter ID card, many were under age and in some cases candidates were listed in more than one locality. The number of city council seats was tripled early this year making it more difficult for small parties to find enough candidates. There was commentary also about how the much-reduced ALN and the tiny APRE could have found enough candidates. The ALN was the second largest political party in 2006 but fell to 1% of the vote in 2011. APRE received only 0.23% of the vote in 2011.

In both of the two largest parties there were protests about party leadership naming local candidates against the wishes of the grassroots base. Karen Morales of the PLI in Ciudad Sandino lamented the imposition of candidates saying, “It's happening all over.” A PLI leadership meeting chaired by party president Indalecio Rodriguez was interrupted by dozens of demonstrators shouting, “No more office candidates. We don't want Alfredo,” referring to Alfredo Gutierrez, the PLI candidate for mayor of Managua. And there were protests by Sandinistas in El Realejo and Posoltega in the Department of Chinandega and in El Jicaral in the Department of Leon after candidates chosen in popular consultations were replaced by others. In Posoltega, Gabriel Olivas said, “We want a different candidate for mayor who was born in Posoltega.”

The Sandinista Party Congress, held August 15, approved the alliances made with other parties and the candidates for mayors and city councils in the country's 153 municipalities. President Daniel Ortega announced that the Organization of American States (OAS) would be invited to observe the municipal elections. He said, “Since we have nothing to hide, I said to Secretary General [Jose Miguel] Insulza that Nicaragua is going to invite the OAS to come again to accompany the elections in our country and we are going to provide them with all the facilities [they will need].” Ortega added, “I want to say here in public that there will be no problems such as we had in the national elections that made it possible to question the electoral results just because in some precincts the OAS observers were not allowed to enter. I remember that we were notified that they weren't being allowed to enter; they gave us the numbers of the precincts and we immediately moved so that they would be allowed in as we had nothing to hide.” Reaction to Ortega's announcement was generally positive. PLI candidate for Managua mayor Alfredo Gutierrez said the participation of the OAS was a good sign but he doubted their presence could prevent the CSE from responding to pressure from the governing party. Yali Molina of the Nicaraguan-American Chamber of Commerce thought that it was an important step but he said national observers should also be accredited.

The Informe Pastran reported that a poll contracted to a foreign polling agency by a Nicaraguan business group showed Sandinista Party candidate Daisy Torres winning Managua with 58% of the vote. Next were Alfredo Gutierrez of the PLI with 25%, Eduardo Fonseca of the PLC with 11%, and Agustin Jarquin Jarquin of the UDC with 6%. The poll was taken before the CSE ruled that the UDC had not met miminum requirements to run. The poll, which surveyed 1,600 Managua voters, had a margin of error of 1%. Neither the business group nor the polling agency was named. (Radio La Primerisima, Aug. 15, 27; Informe Pastran, Aug. 15, 16, 27; La Prensa, Aug. 16, 24, 26, 27)

3. Regional police chiefs meet in Managua

On Aug. 23 at the XXXI Extraordinary Meeting of the Commission of Police Chiefs and Directors from Central America, the Caribbean, Mexico and Colombia in Managua, Nicaragua's National Police Commissioner Aminta Granera said that the chiefs had agreed not to depend on international aid in their fight against drug trafficking, noting that “The security strategy of the Central American Integration System (SICA) has funds for eight prioritized projects.” She also emphasized the need for community cooperation in the effort to create safe space for families and individuals. She said that the drug violence plaguing Central America should be considered the responsibility of other countries in the world. “The situation would be very different if we did not have to the north of us the majority of consumers and to the south of us the biggest producers.” The meeting was focussed on combatting both social and gender violence and the delegates approved “binational and transnational operations” to fight gangs, vehicle theft, human trafickking and border security.

President Daniel Ortega spoke at the final session of the meeting saying that coordination between the affected countries was “the only way to defeat this scourge that is affecting the region.” He noted Nicaragua's efforts to include citizen participation in crime prevention and added, “You have to erradicate poverty; you have to bring more culture, education, health care, sports, to the communities in order to combat the influence of the drug traffickers.” We need investment from the countries that are the market for the drug traffickers, he said, because “we are the victims of this epidemic.”

In related news, the armies of Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic began maneuvers in Guatemala to combat drug trafficking. Guatemalan President Otto Perez announced that 171 United States troops would participate in maneuvers with Guatemalan troops. (La Prensa, Aug. 24; Radio La Primerisima, Aug. 21, 22, 23, 24; El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 23; Informe Pastran, Aug. 27)

4. New minimum wage agreement reached

On Aug. 23, representatives from labor, private business and the government agreed to a 6% rise in the minimum wage for ten sectors of the Nicaraguan economy to take effect on Sept. 1. For small handicraft and tourism businesses, the increase will be 4%. Salaries in free trade zone factories are agreed to in separate negotiations. Union leader Roberto Gonzalez of the Sandinista Worlers Central (CST) said that the salaries of agricultural workers were still much too low. “We have to make better adjustments when we meet again in January,” he said. Jose Adan Aguerri, however, insisted that job stability required that salaries not increase excessively. He was open to a review of the costs of the basket of basic goods as labor leaders have demanded. The unions asked Labor Minister Jeannette Chavez to convene the National Minimum Wage Commission to seek ways to prevent an increase in the prices of basic goods which often occurs after wages go up.

Even after the 6% increase, the minimun wage for farm workers will only be US$96 per month plus food. Workers in the country's fisheries must be paid at least US$148 per month; mine workers US$174; commerce, restaurants, and hotel workers US$178; workers in construction US$217; and those employed by the national government or local governments must be paid at least US$121 per month. (La Prensa, Aug. 24; Radio La Primerisima, Aug. 23; El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 23)

5. More than 200 Managua young people leave gangs behind

More than 200 at-risk young people from nine Managua neighborhoods have been learning vocational skills at the Center for Youth Formation and Development. On Aug. 25, the young people committed themselves to stay away from violence in a ceremony at the National Police headquarters. One of the young participants, Lester Garcia said, “Youth run risks in the streets, with fights, among the gangs, and we are exposed to the twin threats of jail or the cemetery.” He has attended classes at the Center for a year. Arnold Argueta, 18, said, “I was on the streets; I wasn't in the gangs but I could have joined.” He will soon finish one of the Center's training courses. Police Chief Aminta Granera said that 70,000 Central American young people live in a situation of violence. “What is the difference between these 200 and those 70,000 whose blood is being shed?” she asked. She told the youth that they themselves, with the help of God, their parents, the Police, the government, the community, the non-governmental organizations and international aid were making that difference. (El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 25; Radio La Primerisima, Aug. 25)

6. Wave of tremblers hits Nicaragua

Tremblers have been hitting Nicaragua the last week with five on Aug. 27 between 3.6 and 4.3 on the Richter scale. The country was temporarily under alert for a tsunami after a 6.7 earthquake occurred off the coast of El Salvador the night of Aug. 26. The US Geological Survey in Hawaii had issued the alert for 5:32am at San Juan del Sur and 5:51am for Corinto but lifted it later based on an evaluation of “the levels of variation in the ocean” according to reports. Nicaraguans were remembering the tsunami of 1992 that killed 170 people. (El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 27; Informe Pastran, Aug. 27)

7. Authorities confiscate 25,000 turtle eggs

After the most recent arrivals of Olive Ridley sea turtles at La Flor in the Department of Rivas, authorities from the Ministry of the Environment have found and confiscated more than 25,000 eggs dug up by poachers. Meetings were scheduled for Aug. 23 of environmental, military, police, and judicial authorities to plan an offensive against the poachers. Marlon Lainez, coordinator of the La Flor Refuge, said that “Groups of 30 to 40 people invade the nesting areas; the number of park rangers, community volunteers and Army troops is not enough and it is impossible to stop them all.” On August 6, police detained Maria Flores who was travelling on a bus from Rivas with over 14,000 eggs. Over 9,000 eggs were taken from five women who traveled along the Pan American Highway in a taxi. All, including the taxi driver, are being prosecuted. A police source said, “But we are only able to count the ones we find, not those that make it to their destinations.” Park rangers said that these are just the first smaller arrivals of around 900 nesting turtles at a time and that it will be more difficult to police the area in September and October when arrivals of 3,000 turtles are expected. (El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 23)
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