Nicaragua News Service June 18 - 24, 1995 Vol. 3, No. 26 Major news stories for the week: 1. Agreement between branches of government stagnates again? 2. Consultative Group approves $1.5 billion in aid. 3. Antonio Lacayo announces retirement from government. 4. Daniel Ortega visits FNT occupants of National Assembly. 5. FSLN deputies sanctioned. 6. FSLN opens internal electoral process. 7. Vigilante justice--from hero to criminal in one week. 8. Barricada condemns telephone espionage. 9. Esteli records high number of birth defects. 10. Housing deficit in Nicaragua. _________________________________________________________________________ 1. Agreement between government branches stagnates again? In sharp contrast to the pressurized atmosphere of two weeks ago when the upcoming donor's meeting June 19th in Paris forced the Presidency and the Legislature to sit down and come to an agreement, last week's progress in the negotiations was minimal. The Presidency still has not submitted its draft version of a "framework" law that would pave the way for the promulgation of the Constitutional amendments and the other urgent tasks awaiting action, such as the setting up of the new Supreme Electoral Council. 2. Consultative Group approves $1.5 billion in aid. The international donor community announced last week in Paris that member countries would grant a total of $1.5 billion dollars for Nicaragua for the years 1995-1997. $568 million will be disbursed for 1996. The aid, however, was conditioned on the following factors: resolution of the conflict between the different branches of government, reform of the public sector, finishing the privatization process and the continuing application of economic structural adjustment policies. The reform of the public sector means the laying off of over 8,000 state workers. During the meeting, Nicaragua officially presented the donor countries with a five year "National Plan for Sustainable Development". Antonio Lacayo declared that part of the funds granted would be used for the implementation of this plan but he also stated that the donor countries were very interested in reducing the level of the Nicaraguan foreign debt, giving way to the interpretation by some that the major part of the aid granted for 1995-1997 would be used for interest and principal payments on the debt. That view was further reinforced by declarations on the part of the Minister of Finance that, in fact, the aid approved would be used to service and reduce Nicaragua's foreign debt. The FSLN was represented on the official government mission by Victor Hugo Tinoco, member of the FSLN National Directorate. Tinoco declared that the FSLN was participating in the meeting because the need to contribute to the economic development of the country was more important than the specific political interests of any one party. The official position of the FSLN at the meeting was that the international community should continue to assist Nicaragua but that the aid should be distributed among the small and medium-sized productive sectors - those 220,000 families who need credit and technical assistance. Tinoco also cited the need to create productive employment and to resolve the pending property problems. He insisted that the problem of Nicaragua would not be resolved by giving the government subsidies but rather by looking towards an alternative form of foreign cooperation in which the donor community directly supported organizations of farmers and other producers within Nicaragua's civil society. Meanwhile, Dr. Alejandro Martinez Cuenca in a La Prensa interview stated that the funds announced last week in Paris were the same amount that was approved last year but that the important point of last week's Paris meeting was that the donor community ratified their political disposition to continue aiding Nicaragua. However, he also stated that "everything has its price" and that the donors wanted to see the problem between the Executive and the Legislature resolved before August of this year as a condition to start the disbursement process of the funds for this year. (Barricada, June 21, La Prensa, June 23, 24th) 3. Antonio Lacayo announces his retirement from government. During the donor meeting in Paris last week, Antonio Lacayo, Minister of the Presidency and chief of the Nicaraguan delegation, announced that he would soon be retiring from government service. According to a press statement released by the Nicaraguan Embassy in Paris, Lacayo stated that this would be his last meeting with the donor community because in a few months he would be leaving the government to dedicate himself full time to the political arena. Although most Nicaraguan politicians do not fully believe it, Lacayo stated that his retirement from government "is not motivated by any plans for political candidacy, which has been prohibited for me." According to Lacayo, he is choosing to leave his government post because "these past six years of democracy, peace and progress will have been of little use if we do not guarantee the existence of political forces which are fully in agreement with these principles and which can also attract voters." According to the still-not-promulgated constitutional amendments, most government employees who plan to run for public office must resign their position one year before the elections. A Lacayo candidacy, however, is also thwarted by an amendment that does not allow close blood or marriage relations of the current president to run for that office. (Barricada, June 21) 4. FSLN deputies sanctioned. Meanwhile, the weekend before last, three FSLN members of the National Assembly, Nathan Sevilla, Damaso Vargas and Francisco Rivera were suspended from participating in two sessions for their alleged complicity in the occupation of the National Assembly. The decision was taken by the Executive Committee of the Assembly without giving the affected deputies any space in which to defend themselves. The three tried several times to enter the meeting rooms of the Olaf Palme Convention center where the Assembly has been meeting, but have been denied access by the police. Damaso Vargas stated that the measure against the three FSLN members was another violation of their legislative immunity. Nathan Sevilla affirmed that the repression against them was being used as a smoke screen to take attention away from the demands of the urban workers and small farmers affiliated with the FNT who have peacefully occupied the National Assembly and are demanding that the government sit down with them to negotiate their demands for the legalization of their land. Some right wing members of the National Assembly asked for the permanent expulsion of the three FSLN deputies as well as that of Daniel Ortega, Secretary General of the FSLN and also a Deputy in the National Assembly. (Barricada, June 21) 5. Daniel Ortega visits FNT occupants of National Assembly. Last week Daniel Ortega visited the 36 workers and small farmers who have been occupying the National Assembly for two weeks. The participants asked him to intercede with Cardinal Obando y Bravo so that the latter would serve as an intermediary in negotiations with the National Assembly. The President of the National Assembly, Luis Humberto Guzman ordered the electricity and phone services cut off to Assembly installations but did leave the water on. He would not allow a medical brigade in to care for the protesters, some of whom are suffering from heat exhaustion. Leaders of the FNT have complained that the hundreds of police surrounding the Assembly have converted the protesters into hostages. The occupants of the Assembly have announced that they will remain in the building until the National Assembly members start to pressure the government into establishing negotiations to solve the property problem in the countryside and the city. They also repeated that the Assembly members can come in and hold sessions when they want but that the protesters are not moving. The Executive Committee of the National Assembly has made no move to ask the police to force out the protesters nor does it seem that the Presidency will take the first step in solving this problem for the National Assembly. (Barricada, June 23) 6. FSLN opens internal electoral process. Last week, after two days of debate, the Sandinista Assembly approved the first agreements with regard to FSLN participation in the 1996 elections. One of the major agreements was to give the FSLN National Directorate the flexibility to explore possible alliances with other political forces/alliances which would have to be approved by the Sandinista Assembly. During this pre-electoral campaign process, FSLN candidates for the National Assembly and for town council positions will be chosen through a process of local consultation where Sandinistas and non- Sandinistas will participate. According to Monica Baltodano, Organizational Secretary of the FSLN and member of the National Directorate, the pre-electoral campaign officially began last weekend when the Sandinista Assembly approved the final draft of the FSLN electoral strategy, draft that could be reformed during this process of local consultations. During this same time period, the first draft of the FSLN electoral platform will also be elaborated. Baltodano announced that the National Directorate will begin to explore alliances with leaders of popular organizations and with other political parties. She stated that: "We are absolutely sure that for these coming elections the FSLN must propose an alliance of progressive forces, since we consider that no one party by itself would have the capacity to resolve the serious problems facing our country." (Barricada, June 21) 7. Vigilante justice--from hero to criminal in one week. Last week's popular hero, an on-duty policeman who shot and killed a child rape suspect is turning out to be this week's villain and the case, which has all the trappings of Brazilian or South American TV soap opera so popular in Nicaragua, is receiving front page coverage in all of the country's daily newspapers. The police lieutenant, Marvin Torrez, a 5th year law student, had stated that he lost control and killed the suspect when the later cynically stated that the 9 year old victim had "asked for it." Further reports indicate that the police officer had been drinking and the two medical examiners of the alleged victim disagree on evidence which would point to a possible violation committed. A third medical officer's results also were not conclusive. (Barricada, June 21, El Nuevo Diario, June 24th) 8. Barricada condemns telephone espionage. According to an investigative report by Barricada, the phones of President Violeta Chamorro and former president Daniel Ortega have been tapped and conversations recorded for at least the last six months. TELCOR, the Nicaraguan telecommunications ministry has offered to fully investigate the situation while the Ministry of the Governance (which includes the National Police) denies its involvement in any phone espionage. The National Assembly has also promised to investigate. (Barricada, June 22) 9. Esteli records high number of birth defects. The city of Esteli is continuing to register a high number of abnormal births in recent years. In just one day last week at the local hospital, one child was born without a head and two others were born with other major birth defects. In the last several years, there have been numerous cases of children born without brains. No medical investigation has ever been announced to study the problem but some think that the high use of pesticides in the tobacco industry may have some connection with the tragedies. (June 22, 1995) 10. Housing deficit in Nicaragua. Over 400,000 families in Nicaragua either do not have a home or live in subhuman conditions, according to Leonardo Sanchez, a high level official of the Nicaraguan government's mortgage bank, BAVINIC. According to BAVINIC figures, 245,627 families live in crowded housing without basic services such as latrines, while another 130,000 houses need major repairs. The demand for housing grows at a rate of 20,000 units per year. In 1996, BAVINIC will construct over 11,000 homes, while in 1997 they plan to build over 20,000, including homes for the middle class. (Barricada, June 22)