Nicaragua News Service Vol. 2, No. 33 July 31-August 6, 1994 by Colleen Littlejohn Major news stories for the week ending: 1. World Baseball Championships held in Managua. 2. El Limon mine conflict heats up. 3. Nicaragua opposes military intervention in Haiti. 4. Financial and political consensus crises threaten National Assembly. 5. Telica volcano threatens to erupt. 6. The Ben-Hur of Nicaragua strikes again. 7. More murals destroyed in Managua. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. World Baseball Championships held in Managua. Celebrations over the victory of Brazil in the World Cup were barely over when Nicaragua began to make the final preparations for the Baseball World Amateur Cup, which involves competition among countries including the US, China, Cuba, Japan and, of course, Nicaragua, where baseball is the national sport. Ministry of Education officials even changed the dates of mid-semester break so that students would have the chance to go to some of the games. The Nicaraguan government has invested over $3 million in preparations for the event, including major repairs to some of the country's principal baseball stadiums. As of Sunday night, (Aug. 7), Nicaragua, after five games, was undefeated and therefore, moves on to the semi-finals where the most exciting match will be against Cuba, a country which has taken home the trophy, year after year, almost without exception. Ironically, after a severe drought for several months, several baseball games in Managua have had to be rescheduled because of torrential rains. Other games have been plagued with energy problems, due to a lack of adequate equipment such as transformers. Radical right wing fans have even gone so far as to accuse the Ministry of Energy of trying to sabotage the games. Not surprising, despite the fanaticism of Nicaraguans for baseball, and the psychological need for something positive that would erase, for at least a couple of hours, the day to day burden of survival in a country where 70% of the population lives in poverty, stands at the games have been virtually empty, with the exception of the inaugural game, due to the high price of tickets. Part of the activities surrounding the competition included the opening of a Sport's Hall of Fame. Baseball was introduced to Nicaragua a hundred years ago by the US Marines and caught on quickly. It is a relatively expensive sport, and it is not rare to see children playing with stuffed socks and wooden sticks. Baseball is one of the few recreational activities that rural communities have. According the statistics from the Nicaraguan Federation of Amateur Baseball, there are 873 play-offs and championships by municipality or department. Baseball, however, remains a purely male sport and one of the country's national heroes is Denis Martinez, the only Nicaraguan playing in the US Major Leagues. He plays with the Cleveland Indians. (Farmers View July/August 1994). 2. El Limon mine conflict heats up. Workers of the El Limon mine, who took over the mining installation about one month ago, warned last week that police and army personnel are getting ready to forcibly take over the mines to benefit the new owners, a group of Canadian investors of the Triton Mining Company, in conjunction with local associates rumored to be functionaries of the present government. The miners, who in principle had not opposed the privatization of the mine because their union had agreed to participate as full owners of another mining company along with other miners, took over the site on July 18th, after the government refused to settle the basic issues concerning indemnizations, labor stability and collective bargaining. The new company has made it clear that they want the mine without workers and without contracts, a practically fatal blow to the 12,000 inhabitants of El Limon where 466 workers either directly or indirectly generate subsistence for 88% of the population. The El Limon mine was one of the most productive in the country and produced over $250,000 per month. Its potential yet to be mined is valued at over $35 million. According to the government, the privatization of the mine was to lead to the economic reactivation of the area. The workers of the mine had offered to buy the installations but the government demanded $11 million which was not feasible for the union. The mine was sold to the Canadians, however, for $3.5 million and includes a concession to exploit almost 5,000 sq. kilometers of additional territory. The Ministry of Labor last week declared the take over illegal, thus paving the way for the use of force. (Barricada 8/2, 8/3) 3. Nicaragua opposes military intervention in Haiti. The government of Nicaragua is not in favor of a military intervention in Haiti, according to Ernesto Leal, Minister of Foreign Affairs. He stated, "Our country does not support any solution which involves the use of force." He still considers there to be diplomatic and other measures yet to be used and that it is necessary to wait to see what effect those measures will have. "Nicaragua will always support the return of democracy in Haiti, but never via an invasion," Leal said. The foreign minister did however leave open the possibility that the Nicaraguan army would participate in a second stage of "pacification" in Haiti. Leal also spoke of Nicaragua's support for the "democratization" of the United Nations with respect to making of decisions which affect other nations. Specifically, Nicaragua supports expanding the Security Council and the giving more responsibility to the General Assembly. (El Nuevo Diario 8/3, Barricada 8/3) 4. Financial and political consensus crises threaten National Assembly. Lack of funds and lack of consensus on the final version of the new military code are the two issues which are threatening to close down the National Assembly which has been functioning this year after being closed for over a year due to boycotts. Azucena Ferrey, member of the Assembly for the Christian Democratic Party, stated on a local TV interview show that there were five major problems that her party had with the final committee version of the new Code. The differences are related to questions concerning the Directorate of Defense Information (formerly called State Security), the patrimony of the Military Social Security system, and points related to the military system. The lack of consensus on these points has the National Assembly practically paralyzed. On the other hand, the executive branch of the government has begun to exert pressure on the National Assembly with respect to the pending constitutional reforms. Antonio Lacayo stated publicly for the first time, that there was always the legal possibility that the Assembly would be unable to reform the Constitution in only one legislative period. He was referring to a law passed last year, which has still not been signed by the President, leaving some to speculate that the executive branch is thinking of appealing to the Supreme Court for a ruling of unconstitutionality. The Assembly however would only have to repass the law in the beginning of 1995 to be able to continue the reform process without interference from the executive. Another measure of instability has been a cooling of relations between the National Directorate of the FSLN and that party's members of the National Assembly. A meeting between the two groups is expected early this week. (Barricada 8/5) 5. Telica volcano threatens to erupt. The inhabitants of the area surrounding the Telica volcano, located just outside of Leon, are not sleeping well these days due to the fact that their resident volcano has been especially active in the last three weeks. Geologists have recorded over 56 major tremors and three major internal explosions within the volcano. These activities have blown open the crater of the volcano which had been stopped up for over 25 years. However, specialists say that it is unlikely that there will be a major explosion in the near future. 6. The Ben-Hur of Nicaragua strikes again. Ciudad Sandino, a populous neighborhood on the outskirts of Managua has a new hero, Lester Enrique Cruz, who together with this horse, Captain, won the third annual "Ben Hur" races last Sunday, where 30,000 people swarmed the Carlos Fonseca plaza near the banks of Lake Managua to see their neighbors race their humble carts hitched to their work horses, in a poor man's version of the races that characterized the Roman Empire and the movie with Charlton Heston, who was invited but did not show. As a result of the day, Managuans received a few hours of excitement and Cruz received a certificate from the hands of Violeta Chamorro for a new prefabricated house, a parcel of land on which to build and some basic household furnishings. 7. More murals destroyed in Managua. Painters from Managua Mayor Arnaldo Aleman's office again made the "mistake" of painting over several murals which decorated the walls of the Roberto Huembes Market. The administrator of the market stated that the mistake would not happen again, but many of the merchants still remember last year's erasing of the figure of Carlos Fonseca, founder of the FSLN, which was painted on a mural in the food section of the market. In 1991, Aleman, had promised to respect the murals of the Huembes Market. Shortly after that he tried to take down the special war memorial, although that action was halted in time by several market merchants. Early after the 1990 elections, the mayor's office destroyed several major murals, including those within the Luis Alfonso Velaquez children's park. None of the murals have been restored.