Nicaragua Network

1. Antonio Lacayo and three others die in helicopter crash
2. Cuban migrants returned to Costa Rica
3. New US ambassador presents credentials; State Department official visits
4. Hearings held on proposed Sovereign Security Law
5. Nicaraguan and Salvadoran presidents meet to increase cooperation
6. Killers of police in South Caribbean Region sentenced
7. Government to give out thousands of property titles
8. Infrastructure projects improve living standards

1. Antonio Lacayo and three others die in helicopter crash

The National Police announced on the morning of Nov. 17 that a helicopter carrying former Minister of the Presidency Antonio Lacayo and two Coca Cola executives from the United States along with the pilot of the aircraft had crashed in the San Juan River near the Santa Fe bridge at approximately 5:40am. The only body that had been found was that of Phillip Wendell. The bodies of Lacayo, James Horrisberger and pilot Juan Lemus had not been recovered from the river, according to the police. Lacayo served under President Violeta Barrios de Chamorro (1990-1996) and was married to her daughter Cristiana. [On the morning of Nov. 18 it was reported that the body of pilot Juan Lemus had been discovered.]

Carlos Salazar, director of the National Institute of Civil Aviation (INAC), said, “At this time we have activated a search and rescue plan with the Army and the Air Force.” Government spokeswoman Rosario Murillo said that the area was foggy which could have caused the accident although details would have to await statements from INAC and the Police and Army. “We are following the case and are in communication with them. We are dismayed and express our solidarity with the families, with Cristiana, if they do not retrieve him alive. As the hours go by that seems less likely.”  (El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 17; Informe Pastran, Nov. 17)

2. Cuban migrants returned to Costa Rica

On Nov. 15, Nicaraguan Migration authorities and the National Police returned to Costa Rica hundreds of Cuban migrants who had entered illegally across the country’s southern border. The Nicaraguan government accused Costa Rica of violating Nicaragua’s sovereignty and of irresponsibility in dropping the migrants at the border. Costa Rica on Nov. 14 gave seven day visas to 1,600 Cuban migrants so that they could continue their trip to what they said was their eventual destination in the United States. The migrants had flown from Cuba to Ecuador or Venezuela from where they had travelled with the help of human smugglers through Colombia and Panama to Costa Rica.

Government Communications Coordinator Rosario Murillo read an official communique which said, “We emphatically denounce the government of Costa Rica for its violation of our national sovereignty and noncompliance with its obligations as a state that participates in international measures which mandate respect for national borders and the rights of those who go from one country to another in these times of great human mobility.”

Costa Rican Foreign Minister Manuel Gonzalez said at a press conference, “I absolutely reject each one of the words used in the communique of the Nicaraguan authorities. What Costa Rica has done is regularize the situation of the migrants by means of a seven day transit visa. But when other countries take the irresponsible decision to close their borders, those people will look for any way to get to their destination.”

International law expert Mauricio Herdocia said that “the government of Costa Rica should have called Nicaragua and consulted about what it wanted to do about this because a country should be very careful in allowing transit of migrants without legal documentation to third countries, above all if they are accompanied by migrant smugglers.” He added that if Nicaragua were to allow passage through the country it would have to also consult with the government of the United States to see if it was ready to accept them in its territory. “This shows,” he stated, “the fact that the lack of dialogue between Costa Rica and Nicaragua once again is generating a conflict situation that could have been avoided and resolved to the benefit of these people who also merit humanitarian treatment.”

The Nicaraguan government announced that it will bring the issue before the Security Committee of the Central American Integration System (SICA) on Nov. 17. The government communique said, “In Central America we have an integration system, SICA, where there is a continuing discussion and agreement on subjects related to sovereignty, border security and migration and all the governments of the region participate.” Costa Rican Foreign Minister Gonzalez announced that it would take its case to the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and to the Organization of American States (OAS) with the goal of creating a humanitarian corridor for the Cubans to get to the US. (El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 14, 15, 16; Informe Pastran, Nov. 16)

3. New US ambassador presents credentials; State Department official visits

Last week, US State Department official Francisco Palmieri, who serves as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Central America and Caribbean in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, visited Nicaragua for two days and new US Ambassador to Nicaragua Laura Dogu presented her credentials to President Daniel Ortega.

At the presentation of credentials on Nov. 9, Dogu said that it was “an honor to be President Obama’s representative in Nicaragua, a country of warm people.” She went on to say that she wished to convey “best wishes from the United States for a future that is prosperous, safe and democratic.” She noted that there was a closeness between the two countries because 400,000 Nicaraguans live in the US and a quarter million US tourists visit Nicaragua each year. “We will continue cooperating with the Nicaraguan government in the fight against narcotics trafficking and collaborating with local organizations to improve citizen security,” she said, adding, “To achieve those objectives we are working with vulnerable populations such as at-risk youth, offering vocational training and drug use prevention.”

Ortega said that, “The important thing is that we have been able to advance in the relations between the United States and Nicaragua.  Although there have been differences, we have been able to overcome them to build good relations. We want good relations with the United States, with its people and with its government.”

Ortega met with Deputy Assistant Secretary Palmieri on Nov. 10 at a meeting during which Ambassador Dogu said they discussed the full range of common interests of the United States and Nicaragua. In remarks after the meeting, President Ortega said issues such as security, trade, democracy and peace were covered, with special attention to the Central American integration process. Ortega also referred to the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the need to strengthen the Central American Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA). “The TPP is very important to us and I have spoken to President Obama about this issue, noting we should ensure that TPP does not impact adversely on the trade agreement between the United States and Central America,” he stated.

After the meeting Ortega gave Palmieri and Dogu a tour of his office, showing them the bomb shelter built in the 1980s. “This is a remnant of the period of President Reagan… a refuge that was prepared to withstand bombing by the United States.” Dogu said, “Now we don’t need it!” to which First Lady Rosario Murillo replied that “It is too difficult to tear it down as it is very sturdy.”

In an interview published in El Nuevo Diario, Palmieri said that the US was interested in promoting Central American integration. He stated, “In the twenty-first century Central America must unite as a market in order to compete. It shouldn’t be one country competing against another in the region; it’s not like that anymore. Now the whole region has to recognize that the competition comes from the other side of the Pacific, from South America, Africa, Europe.” He noted that in recent years, aid to Nicaragua in the areas of economic development and “democracy promotion” had doubled. When asked about electoral “observation” vs electoral “accompaniment”, he said that national and international observation could be very important when elections are close, to give legitimacy to the results, and that the United States supported traditional observation under United Nations guidelines. (El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 9, 10, 11; Informe Pastran, Nov. 10, 11, 12; Nicaragua News, Nov. 11)

4. Hearings held on proposed Sovereign Security Law

The Justice Committee of the National Assembly heard testimony last week on the proposed Sovereign Security Law which President Daniel Ortega sent to the Assembly in October. Assembly Deputy Edwin Castro, head of the Sandinista Bench, explained that the law adds to the types of threats and risks addressed in the previous national security law, Law 750, including “the expansion of criminal organizations, foreign cyber-attacks that could affect national communications systems, other catastrophes or disasters that can put at risk the lives of people or their goods, and any other activities that threaten the integral development of the people, family, and community.”

Among those testifying were representatives of several government ministries, the Supreme Court, the Financial Analysis Unit, the Superintendent of Banks, the National System for the Prevention and Attention to Disasters (SINAPRED), the Prosecutor General’s Office, the General Directorate for Migration, and the Human Rights Ombudsman’s office, along with leaders of the Superior Council of Private Enterprise (COSEP). The bill can be read here: http://www.radiolaprimerisima.com/files/doc/Iniciativa_d_Ley_de_Seguridad_Soberana_de_la_Repub_d_Nic.pdf

Ana Julia Guido of the Public Ministry, which represents victims and prosecutes criminals, said that in no way would her ministry lose its independence under the law, noting, “There has been a bad interpretation [of the bill], but never would we lose our independence; what there would be is more coordination so that the work would be better.” Vice President Omar Halleslevens said that the new law amplifies measures against the gangs that have increased in the Northern Triangle of Central America and unites efforts against natural disasters. Supreme Court justices praised the inclusion of cybercrime in the legislation.

However, COSEP legal adviser Freddy Blandon said that an article was needed to prevent abuse of authority by public officials and COSEP president Jose Adan Aguerri said separately that his organization would add to the article that guarantees “the existence of governments elected by universal, direct, free and secret vote” the word “transparent.”

Deputy Wilber Lopez of the opposition Independent Liberal Party said that the law would violate the rights of citizens to demonstrate and would militarize the country. He insisted, “We are not going to accept this law; we will continue to insist [on our opposition] and make the negatives known.” Juanita Jimenez of the Autonomous Women’s Movement (MAM) said that the legislation showed that “what we have is an institutionalized dictatorship and the total loss of individual rights.”

Deputy Wilfredo Navarro said, however, that the law would prohibit authorities from tapping phone calls or electronic devices without a court order and from violating any right guaranteed by international accords ratified by Nicaragua. (El Nuevo Diario, Oct. 30, Nov. 10, 11, 12; Informe Pastran, Oct. 15, Nov. 10, 12; Radio La Primerisima, Oct. 14; Nicaragua News, Oct. 15)

5. Nicaraguan and Salvadoran presidents meet to increase cooperation

President Daniel Ortega and El Salvador President Salvador Sanchez met in Managua to discuss how to strengthen Central America integration and the fight against the narcotics trafficking and organized crime that plague the Northern Triangle of Central America. Both presidents affirmed that drug trafficking networks and criminal gangs are the biggest threats in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. Ortega said that the fight against them benefits the whole region and helps to strengthen the peace.  Ortega and Sanchez called on the United States to fulfill its promise of aid and to provide more resources for the battle against narcotics trafficking and organized crime.  Sanchez acknowledged that there is no way to resolve El Salvador’s gang problem without a solution to poverty and inequality which requires justice and an integrated strategy to generate options for the children and youth who are not studying or working. In El Salvador’s case, that is 35% of that age group, he said.

During the meeting with Sanchez, Ortega also spoke by phone with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to convey solidarity from both presidents with Venezuela in the face of continuous attacks against the Bolivarian Revolution in advance of legislative elections set for Dec. 6. (El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 16; Informe Pastran, Nov. 16)

6. Killers of police in South Caribbean Region sentenced

Three men convicted of killing five policemen in the community of Punta Gorda in the municipality of Bluefields in the South Caribbean Autonomous Region were sentenced last week for their crimes in the Sixth District Criminal Court of Managua. They each were sentenced to 25 years for the murders, five years for organized crime, four years for aggravated robbery, and one year for illegal weapons possession but will serve only the maximum sentence under Nicaraguan law which is 30 years in prison. The men ambushed the five police in an attempt to free a fellow gang member who the officers had arrested for serious domestic violence. Others involved in the crime are still at large. (El Nuevo Diario, Nov. 9, 10)

7. Government to give out thousands of property titles

Government Spokeswoman Rosario Murillo reported that the government will award 27,000 property titles between Dec. 10 and 18 in every municipality. She said 58% of the recipients will be women heads of households. Murillo credited the “hard work of coordination between the Property Administration and the young people of the Solidarity Promotors” for completing the groundwork to allow so many titles to be awarded to the families in their homes. After the electoral loss of 1990 many people who received homes or land under the Revolution discovered that they did not have secure legal titles to their property. Since returning to office, the government of President Daniel Ortega has worked to title property, both individual titles and indigenous communal titles, so that insecurity around property would be eliminated. (Informe Pastran, Nov. 13)

8. Infrastructure projects improve living standards

Last week 100 families in Somotillo and 499 families in Tipitapa were wired into the national electrical grid at a cost of US$324,000. The projects are part of the National Sustainable Electrification and Renewable Energy Program (PNESER), being implemented by the Nicaragua government in the 153 municipalities of the country. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) also approved a US$90 million loan for highways in Nicaragua. The money will be spent to pave highways in the Pantasma-Wiwili and Rosita-Bonanza corridors which will improve highway connections between the Pacific and Caribbean sides of the country. (Nicaragua News, Nov. 10, 11, 12)