Memorial of Nicaragua

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Memorial of Nicaragua MEMORIAL OF NICARAGUA MÉMOIRE DU NICARAGUA PART ONE THE EVIDENCE- ~ -- OF-. COSTA ~ ~ RICA'S LEGAL- - RESPONSIBII~II'YFOR MlLlTARY AND POI.II'ICAL ACTIVITII.:S INTEKDEI) TO OVI<RTHROW THE GOVERNMENT OF NICARAGUA INTRODUCTION 1. On 28 July 1986, Nicaragua filed its Application in the Court alleging that Costa Rica, by organizing, assisting, fomenting, participating in and tolerating acts of armed force in and against the territory of Nicaragua, committed by armed bands of counter-revolutionaries hased in Costa Rican territory had violated its obligations ta Nicaragua under international law. The Application asked that the Court declare the conduct of Costa Rica to be in breach of inter- national law and to order Costa Rica to cease and desist from such activities. II rcquesied the Court IO declaie ihat Co\ta Rica is undrr a dut). IO make com- pensation for al1 injury caused ta Nicaragua hv ihr brca:he\ oi intcrnaiional la\\, found by the Court. 2. On 17 October 1986, time-limits were set for the presentation of written Memorials on the merits of the case, under which the Memorial of Nicaragua was to be filed on 21 July 1987, and the Memorial of Costa Rica was to be filed nine months later. On 16 July 1987, the Court extended the date for the presen- tation of Nicaragua's Memorial to 10 August 1987. CHAPTER 1. SUMMARY AND OVERVIEW OF THE EVIDENCE 3. The Government of Costa Rica has permitted counter-revolutionary organizations dedicated to the armed overthrow of the Government of Nicaragua to use Costa Rican territory to conduct military and political activities against Nicaragua, and has actively collaborated in these activities. Costa Rica's actions constitute a blatant and ongoing intervention in Nicaragua's intemal affairs, and a use of force against Nicaragua, in violation of its legal obligations to Nicaragua under general international law. the Charters of the Organization of American States and the United Nations, two hilateral treaties of amity, the Convention on Duties and Rights of States in the Event of Civil Strife, and other multilateral instruments. A. The Use of Costa Rican Territory with the Knowledge and Approval of the Costa Ricsn Government 4. There is overwhelming evidence that Nicaraguan counter-revolutionary (or "confia'? organizations have used Costa Rican territory to conduct military and political activities aimed ai overthrowing the Government of Nicaragua by armed force. At least two of these politico-military organizations, ARDE' (from 1982 to mid-1986) and UNO' (from mid-1985 to 1987) were oermitted bv Costa Riran aurhoritiesto estnblish headquartcrs fasilities in San Jose, and to maintain nunierou\ miliiary camps in the northern part of the country. closc to the border with Nicaraaua. The headouarters facilities were used to hold reaular public assemblies of c~nrraleaders, where military and political strategieswere developed for forcihly replacing the Government of Nicaragua, for organiza- tional activities in connection with this effort. for issuine- =nublic declarations calling for armed struggle against the Nicaraguan Government, and for co- ordinatine,. supply ~~~ and logistical services in suooort. of the military activities con- ducted from the camps Tn the north. 5. The military camps themselves were used as staging points for armed attacks in and against Nicaragua, as safe havens for contra forces after comple- tion of their combat inissions inside Nicaragua, as training grounds for new recruits, and as military supply depots. By 1985, ai least 27 of these camps were in oneration. (Ann. C. Attachment 5. Table 1.) There were also at least nine îirskips in ~~staRican tcrriiory that wcre used to airdrop supplies IO contra forces during missions inside Nicaragua. (Ann. C, Attachmeni 5, Table 2.) Thc evidence demonstrates that this was no small-scale oneration. but a full-fledaed war effort. According to the United States ~mbassadorto costa Rica, as many as 2,800 contra combatants operated from the Costa Rican camps, spread al1 along the border with ~icaragua.(Ann. 1, Attachment 63.) They were heavily armed with automatic weapons, mortars, grenade launchers and even a small air force and navy. In five years of continuous fighting, they carried out more ' Alianza Revolucionaria Dcmacratica. or Democratic Revolutianary Alliance. ' United Nicaraguan Opposition. MEMORIAL OF NICARAGUA 13 than 350 attacks inside Nicaragua, mostly by land but also by air and sea. There have been hundreds of airdrops of supplies to contra forces inside Nicaragua originating from Costa Rican airstrips. The consequences to Nicaragua, with a oooulation of barelv 3 million and a ver caoita. -eross national .nrodufl of $770. hate been staggering both in humanand economic terms'. 6. The evidence is equally overwhelming that these activities were conducted with the knowledee and aooroval of the costa Rican Government at ils hiahest levels. Costa ~i&could hardly he unaware of the existence of contra Gead- quarters in its own capital city, of the much publicized presence of contra military and poliii:al leader. or the frrquent public arsemblies and dcclaraiionr calling for the armed overihrow of the Nicaraguan Govcrnmcnt. or thecounilcss other dailv activities of these ornanizations aimed at that end. It is eauallv incon- ceivable ihat Costa Rica could have been unaware of ihçexiensiveand soniinuous military aciivities of the contrar bascd in Costa Risan ierriiory. Like the conrras' oolitical activities in San José. their militarv activities in the northern oart of the country have always been matters of public knowledge in Costa Rica. The existence of the camps, the training activities conducted there and the constant cross-border attackson ~icaraeua- have been reoorted reeularlv-. in the Costa Rican press, and in the newspapers that the contra organizations themselves are , permitted to oublish and distribute in Costa Rica. The contras' use of Costa ~icanterritor; to waee war on Nicaraeua has been so ooen--~~~ that~~ ~~~ it~ is~ recoenized in official publicaiions oiihe United tat tes Deparimîni of Starï, ~uchas ihe Dir- rionary oflnternational Relations Ternis (1987). which defines the uord "Con- tras" as followi: "Shortened form of the word 'countrarevolucionarios' fcounter-revolu. tionaries), the term the Sandinista regime in Nicaragua uses for the guerrilla forces fiehtine aeainst them. The Contras cornorise former members of the ~omozisÏh'at~on~l Guard. disideni righi-ringformer Sandinirias. and the Miskito Indian minority: ea;h of ihcsc forccr operaie\ independenily. The Contras ooerate from bases in Honduras and Costa Rica. and receive politi- cal and maierial;uppori froni the United Siaics. Therc have bern rerurrent armcd clashes berreen Sandinista government iroops and the rebels since Marsh 1982." (Ann. F, Attïchment 1, p. 23 (emphasis suppliedj.) 7. Between 1982 and 1987, Nicaraeua delivered to Costa Rica more than 150 diplomatic notes protesting the contras' activities in or emanating from Costa Rica, in many cases providing detailed evidence of the use of Costa Rican ter- ritorv and the-active collaboration or oarticioation of Costa Rican officiais. (See. e.g.,.~nn.A, Artachmenis 109. 125,'172, i07, 228, and 237 (Diplornatic Note; of Nicaragua).) Nicaragua deliveied similar proicrts io the bilaieral hlixed Com- mission thai functioned from 1982 to 1984. and the Commission of Supervision and Pre\.eniion, esiablished in 1984 through the pood offices of the Coiitadora Group. (Ann. R. Artachment\ 1 and 2.) Both commissions were estahlihhed ai ~icaragua'surging in order to investigate and help resolve disputes arising from military activities hy contra forces based in Costa Rica. (See also Ann. B, Attach- ment 3.) Both directly and through these commissions, Nicaragua presented Costa Rica with concrete proof of the existence and locations of the following contra military camps inside Costa Rica, inter alia: 1. El Inferno - 5.5 km south-east of Penas Blancas. 2. Barrs de Colorado - 22.5 km south-west of San Juan del Norte. International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, WortdDevelopmenr Reporr 1987, Oxford University Press (19871. 14 BORDER AND TRANSBORDER ARMED ACTIONS 3. El Valle - 9.5 km West of Cardenas. 4. Los Vueltas - 7.5 km south of Pefias Blancas. 5. Quebrada de Agria - 17 km south-west of Peaas Blancas. 6. El Murci6lago - 35 km south-west of Peaas Blancas. 7. Los Andes - 5 km north-east of El Naranjo (Monte Plata) 8. La Liberlad - east of Peaas Blancas. 9. Sarupiqui - 28 km south-west of San Juan del Norte. 10. Luno Azul - 10~~ km~ south-west~~ of El Castillo. II. Luno B1anc.a - south-ucsi of El Casiillo. 12. Tango Rojo 2 - 5W meters from Los Chiler. along ihc border. 13. Taneo 1 and 2 -- in~~~ the~~~~ El~ Castillo~ ~ cecior. 14. 21 and 22 - 12.5 km south-west of the El Papaturro border post. 15. Hacienda Conventillo - 3 km east of El Naranjo. 16. San Dimas - 4 km south of Peaas Blancas. 17. El Amo (Hacienda) - 21 km south of Peiias Blancas. 18. Verdum - 11 km south-east of Cardenas. 19. Santa Cecilia (Hacienda) - 14 km south of Mexico, along the border. 21. El Refugio - 2 km south of the Fatima border post. 22. Los Angeles - 6 km south of Fatima. 23. Berlin (Hacienda) - Il km from Fatima. 24. Santa Isabel (Hacienda) - 8 km south of Fatima. 25. Cerro Crucitas - 5 km south of Rio El Infiernito. 26. Fincas El Chivito and Escalera - 15 km south-west of El Castillo. 27. Laguna Garza - 8 km south of the San Juan delta. (Ann. C, Attachment 5, Table 1.) 8. As of the date of Nicaragua's Application to this Court, Costa Rica had made no serious effort to curtail the military activities of the contras emanating from these and other contra camps, or to restrict the other contra activities addressed in the diplomatic correspondence. Indeed, Costa Rica's refusal to acknowledge responsibility for the armed attacks against Nicaragua emanating from its own territory, or to take appropriate remedial measures, resulted in the failure of hoth the Mixed Commission and the Commission of Supervision and Prevention.
Recommended publications
  • Latin America Timeli
    ., ,190 SII(;I;I':STLIl I!EAIlINt:~ Inforprcss CcntrO,"llIll"ican;1 The Natio" 9a Calle "A," 3-56, z.l P.O. !lox lOS:! Guatemala Marion, Ohio 13:J05 Institute for Policy Studies Resource The National Catholic Heporter Materials on U.S. Military Assis­ P.O. Box 281 tance in Central America Kansas City, MO 64141 Institute for Policy Studies 1901 Q Street, N.W. News from Guatemala Washington, D.C. 20009 P.O. Box 335, Station R Chronology of Events* Toronto, Ontario, Canada M1G 4C3 LADOC Latinamerica Press New Left Review Apartado 5594 7 Carlisle Street 1821-Central America follows the example of Agustin Iturbide in Mexico Lima 100, Peru London WIV6NL and declares independence from Spain. England 1822-Central America joins Iturbide's Mexican Empire. Latin America Update Washington Office on Latin America Newsletter of the Heligious Task Force 1823-Iturbide is overthrown and Central America declares itself indepen­ 110 Maryland Avenue, N.W. for El Salvador dent as the United Provinces of Central America. 1747 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20002 1823-President James Monroe, fearing an attempt by Spain to restore its Washington, D.C. 20009 Latin American Perspectives authority over its rebellious New World colonies, declares that the United P.O. Box 792 Nicaraguan Perspectives States will tolerate no further European intervention in the affairs of the Riverside, CA 92502 Nicaragua Information Oenter nations of Central and South America. P.O. Box 1004 1833-The first major peasant rebellion in EI Salvador occurs. It is led by Latin America Weekly Report and Berkeley, CA !H704 Latin America Regional Reports: the Indian Anastasio Aquino.
    [Show full text]
  • Otilio Ulate and the Traditional Response to Contemporary Political Change in Costa Rica
    Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1977 Otilio Ulate and the Traditional Response to Contemporary Political Change in Costa Rica. Judy Oliver Milner Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Milner, Judy Oliver, "Otilio Ulate and the Traditional Response to Contemporary Political Change in Costa Rica." (1977). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 3127. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/3127 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INFORMATION TO USERS This material was produced from a microfilm copy of the original document. While the most advanced technological means to photograph and reproduce this document have been used, the quality is heavily dependent upon the quality of the original submitted. The following explanation of techniques is provided to help you understand markings or patterns which may appear on this reproduction. 1. The sign or "target" for pages apparently lacking from the document photographed is "Missing Page(s)". If it was possible to obtain the missing page(s) or section, they are spliced into the film along with adjacent pages. This may have necessitated cutting thru an image and duplicating adjacent pages to insure you complete continuity. 2. When an image on the film is obliterated with a large round black mark, it is an indication that the photographer suspected that the copy may have moved during exposure and thus cause a blurred image.
    [Show full text]
  • Haiirlfphtpr Hpralji for a Dinah ) Manchester — a City of Village Charm Ntaln- a Risk 30 Cents >D the Saturday, Nov
    lostt: n.) (In (CC) <^Ns >ldfa- fendt. Ovaf' » ' An K>IV8S world. nvtta* »ii. (90 n Plc- :tantly leen- HaiirlfpHtPr HpralJi for a Dinah ) Manchester — A City of Village Charm ntaln- a risk 30 Cents >d the Saturday, Nov. 14.1987 y with n. W ill O 'Q ill ytallar lapra- Y> dfl* Tiny ‘FIRST STEF BY ORTEGA i in an tty by , John Contras I Evil' ito an f Den- criticize 1971. peace plan 1/ WASHINGTON (AP) — Nicara­ guan President Daniel Ortega on Friday laid out a detailed plan for reaching a cease-fire in three weeks with the Contras fighting his leftist government and a mediator agreed to carry the proposal to the U.S.-backed rebels. Ortega, indicating flexibility, called his plan “ a proposal, not an ultimatum." Contra leaders, react­ ing to news reports in Miami, criticized the plan and termed it "a proposal for anorderly surrender.” Ortega's 11-point plan was re­ ceived by Nicaraguan Cardinal Miguel Obando y Bravo, who agreed to act as a mediator between the two sides. The prelate planned to convey Ortega’s offer to the Contras and seek a response, opening cease-fire negotiations. The plan calls for a cease-fire to begin on Dec. 5 and for rebel troops inside Nicaragua to move to one of three cease-fire zones. The rebels would lay down their arms on Jan. 5 before independent observers, and then be granted amnesty. The plan specifies that Contras in the field are not to get any military supplies during the cease-fire, but would allow food, clothing and medical care to be provided them by a neutral international agency.
    [Show full text]
  • Abrams Says Resignation of Uno Leader Arturo Cruz Heavy Blow to Contra Movement Deborah Tyroler
    University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository NotiCen Latin America Digital Beat (LADB) 2-13-1987 Abrams Says Resignation Of Uno Leader Arturo Cruz Heavy Blow To Contra Movement Deborah Tyroler Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/noticen Recommended Citation Tyroler, Deborah. "Abrams Says Resignation Of Uno Leader Arturo Cruz Heavy Blow To Contra Movement." (1987). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/noticen/432 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Latin America Digital Beat (LADB) at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in NotiCen by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. LADB Article Id: 077109 ISSN: 1089-1560 Abrams Says Resignation Of Uno Leader Arturo Cruz Heavy Blow To Contra Movement by Deborah Tyroler Category/Department: General Published: Friday, February 13, 1987 At a Feb. 11 meeting with more than 200 top university educators at the State Department, Asst. Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs Elliott Abrams said the resignation of Arturo Cruz from the United Nicaraguan Opposition (UNO) would deal a heavy blow to the contra movement. In view of Cruz's reported resignation, Abrams said the contra forces are discussing what constitutes a "better structure, a more effective structure...You must remember that support for the opposition is directly proportional to its effectiveness." At a recent press conference UNO leader Adolfo Calero refused to comment on the resignation
    [Show full text]
  • IDENTITY and PERSUASION How Nations Remember Their Pasts and Make Their Futures
    IDENTITY AND PERSUASION How Nations Remember Their Pasts and Make Their Futures By CONSUELO CRUZ* DENTITY politics now occupies center stage. It is on explosive dis- Iplay in a wide range of settings, from Africa to the Balkans. And it is more subtly at work in the democracies of the West: NATO leaders must reexamine their own guiding principles in the face of multiple human- itarian disasters brought about by tribal, ethnic, and religious hatreds, while simultaneously dealing with increasingly heterogenous popula- tions at home and ceaseless migrant flows from east and south. It is no surprise, then, that identity should figure prominently in scholarly debates about conflict resolution, migration, citizenship, transnational alliances, democratization, nation and state building, and even globalization. Nor is it a puzzle that long-standing debates about identity should have produced the two clearly defined camps that we know as primordialists and constructivists.1 What is perplexing is the current failure to investigate systematically the complex linkages be- tween identity formation and the expressive practices of political actors. After all, we approach reality rhetorically—that is, with an intent to convince.2 This is why persuasion is the hallmark of effective leader- ship. Short of pure coercion, it is the most direct way to mobilize or paralyze a group. And this is why rhetorical power—recognized as cen- * I would like to thank Peter Hall, Jeffrey Legro, Sheri Berman, and Mehmet Tabak for their in- sightful suggestions on a previous version of this article. I am also grateful to Deborah Yashar, Anna Seleny, Paola Cesarini, and the anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on the present ver- sion.
    [Show full text]
  • World Air Forces 2018 in Association with 1 | Flightglobal
    WORLD AIR FORCES 2018 IN ASSOCIATION WITH 1 | FlightGlobal Umschlag World Air Forces 2018.indd Alle Seiten 16.11.17 14:23 WORLD AIR FORCES Directory Power players While the new US president’s confrontational style of international diplomacy stoked rivalries, the global military fleet saw a modest rise in numbers: except in North America CRAIG HOYLE LONDON ground-attack aircraft had been destroyed, DATA COMPILED BY DARIA GLAZUNOVA, MARK KWIATKOWSKI & SANDRA LEWIS-RICE Flight Fleets Analyzer shows the action as hav- DATA ANALYSIS BY ANTOINE FAFARD ing had limited materiel effect. It did, however, draw Russia’s ire, as a detachment of its own rinkmanship was the name of the of US Navy destroyers launched 59 Raytheon combat aircraft was using the same Syrian base. game for much of the 2017 calendar Tomahawk cruise missiles towards Syria’s Al- Another spike in rhetoric came in mid-June, year, with global tensions in no small Shayrat air base, targeting its runways and hard- when a Syrian Su-22 was shot down by a US part linked to the head-on approach ened aircraft shelters housing Sukhoi Su-22s. Navy Boeing F/A-18E Super Hornet after attack- B to diplomacy taken by US President Don- Despite initial claims from the Pentagon that ing opposition forces backed by Washington. ald Trump. about one-third of its more than 40 such Syria threatened to target US combat aircraft Largely continuing with the firebrand with advanced surface-to-air missile systems in soundbites which brought him to the Oval Of- Trump and Kim Jong-un the wake of the incident.
    [Show full text]
  • World Air Forces Flight 2011/2012 International
    SPECIAL REPORT WORLD AIR FORCES FLIGHT 2011/2012 INTERNATIONAL IN ASSOCIATION WITH Secure your availability. Rely on our performance. Aircraft availability on the flight line is more than ever essential for the Air Force mission fulfilment. Cooperating with the right industrial partner is of strategic importance and key to improving Air Force logistics and supply chain management. RUAG provides you with new options to resource your mission. More than 40 years of flight line management make us the experienced and capable partner we are – a partner you can rely on. RUAG Aviation Military Aviation · Seetalstrasse 175 · P.O. Box 301 · 6032 Emmen · Switzerland Legal domicile: RUAG Switzerland Ltd · Seetalstrasse 175 · P.O. Box 301 · 6032 Emmen Tel. +41 41 268 41 11 · Fax +41 41 260 25 88 · [email protected] · www.ruag.com WORLD AIR FORCES 2011/2012 CONTENT ANALYSIS 4 Worldwide active fleet per region 5 Worldwide active fleet share per country 6 Worldwide top 10 active aircraft types 8 WORLD AIR FORCES World Air Forces directory 9 TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT FLIGHTGLOBAL INSIGHT AND REPORT SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES, CONTACT: Flightglobal Insight Quadrant House, The Quadrant Sutton, Surrey, SM2 5AS, UK Tel: + 44 208 652 8724 Email:LQVLJKW#ÁLJKWJOREDOFRP Website: ZZZÁLJKWJOREDOFRPLQVLJKt World Air Forces 2011/2012 | Flightglobal Insight | 3 WORLD AIR FORCES 2011/2012 The French and Qatari air forces deployed Mirage 2000-5s for the fight over Libya JOINT RESPONSE Air arms around the world reacted to multiple challenges during 2011, despite fleet and budget cuts. We list the current inventories and procurement plans of 160 nations.
    [Show full text]
  • Asamblea Legislativa De La República De Costa Rica
    ASAMBLEA LEGISLATIVA DE LA REPÚBLICA DE COSTA RICA PROYECTO DE LEY DECLARACIÓN DE LUIS ALBERTO MONGE ALVAREZ COMO BENEMÉRITO DE LA PATRIA Expediente N.º 20.293 RONNY MONGE SALAS DIPUTADO NOTA:ESTE PROYECTO SE ENCUENTRA EN PROCESO DE REVISIÓN EN EL DEPARTAMENTO DE SERVICIOS PARLAMENTARIOS Y ESTÁ SUJETO A MODIFICACIONES DE FORMA CUANDO ASÍ LO AMERITE. ADEMÁS, ESTÁ PENDIENTE QUE SE LE ASIGNE COMISIÓN PARA LA PUBLICACIÓN. PROYECTO DE LEY DECLARACION DE LUIS ALBERTO MONGE ALVAREZ COMO BENEMÉRITO DE LA PATRIA Expediente N.º 20.293 ASAMBLEA LEGISLATIVA: Muchas son las características con las que se puede describir a las personas que dejan huellas en la historia, y se espera no quede corta la descripción de un hombre que luchó en su vida entera, por su familia, sus ideales, por la gente, por su país, y en razón de todos sus merecimientos y su esfuerzo se hace ineludible la presentación de un proyecto de Ley que pretende declarar benemérito de la patria a Luis Alberto Monge Alvarez. Luis Alberto Monge Álvarez nació el 29 de diciembre de 1925 en Palmares de Alajuela, hijo de Gerardo Monge Quesada y Elisa Álvarez Vargas, proveniente de una familia palmareña de campesinos. Su formación académica fue básica, en razón de las condiciones económicas limitadas de su familia. A los 19 años fue electo Presidente de la Confederación de Trabajadores Rerum Novarum, donde desarrolló una labor de dirigencia sindical. Estuvo designado como Secretario Regional para asuntos de América Latina de la Organización Internacional del Trabajo (OIT). Militó en el Ejército de Liberación Nacional cuando este se alzó en armas al ser anuladas las elecciones de 1948, este ejército tomó el poder en Costa Rica el 8 de mayo de 1948.
    [Show full text]
  • SENATE-Tuesday, June 5, 1984 the Senate Met at 11 A.M
    June 5, 1984 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-SENATE 14931 SENATE-Tuesday, June _5, 1984 The Senate met at 11 a.m. and was SENATE SCHEDULE The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem­ called to order by the Honorable Mr. BAKER. Mr. President, today pore. Without objection, it is so or­ DANIEL J. EVANS, a Senator from the the Senate convenes pursuant to the dered. State of Washington. adjournment of yesterday. Under the Mr. BAKER. Of course, this is to ac­ order previously entered, the reading commodate the requirement for Sena­ PRAYER of the Journal is dispensed with, no tors to attend caucuses by both par­ The Chaplain, the Reverend Rich­ resolutions may come over under the ties, which are held away from the ard C. Halverson, D.D., offered the fol­ rule, the call of the calendar has been Senate Chamber. lowing prayer: dispensed with, and morning hour has Mr. President, I do not anticipate been deemed to have expired. that today will be a late day, but, once Let us pray. Mr. President, this is no surprise, of more, I do expect us to be in for a full Gracious Father in Heaven, we ac­ course, to the minority leader as to week, including Friday. knowledge the abundance which Thou why that was done yesterday. It cre­ Mr. President, there is a messenger hast lavished upon us. We live in ated a new legislative day in the at the door from the House of Repre­ luxury compared to most people in the Senate with respect to the availability sentatives. world including many in our land­ of measures which have now reached some just a few blocks from this build­ the calendar.
    [Show full text]
  • Washington's Foundering Fathers: the Contras and Contragate
    AUSTRALIAN LEFT REVIEW 31 WASHINGTON'S FOUNDERING FATHERS The Contras and Contragate Barry Carr Contragate revealed the depth of Washington's commitment to the Contras. But it hasn't made life any easier for Nicaragua. here is no issue closer to the footsteps of the Founding Fathers of million) to the Contras, Reagan heart of the Reagan administ­ the United States, and has likened commented "I'm sure it put a smile T ration than its crusade against them to Simon Bolivar, the French on the face ofthe Statue ofLiberty".1 the Sandinista government of Resistance and, most recently and Nicaragua. President Reagan is bizarrely, the Abratlam Lincoln Support for the Nicaraguan completely besotted with the Brigade of the Spanish Civil War. counter-revolution is the best Contras. He has described them as When the US Co!!gress finall3 voted, example of the US's grotesque efforts freedom fighters following in the in JuJy 1986, to renew aid ($100 at "symmetry" - i.e. the attempt to AUSTRALIAN LEFT REVIEW 33 mtmtc and counter the Soviet Union's alleged instigation of national liberation movements by fomenting anti-communist insurgencies in regions of the world where US hegemony is threatened by nationalist and socialist states. The Contras emerged from the ranks of the hated National Guard who fled to Honduras and Costa Rica following on the fall of the Somoza dynasty in 1979. The bedraggled and demoralised Somocistas in Honduras were reorganised by the CIA during 1981, receiving $19 million in US government funds, and training from Argentine military advisers who had been blooded in the ferocious "dirty war" of 1976-81 in which 25-30,000 Argentine civilians were murdered.
    [Show full text]
  • Nicaragua= a Blueprint for Democracy
    558 , . ,. .. .. .. _..I..i.:... I., I I .. 1." . January 20, 1987 ... .. ~ .. -... NICARAGUA= A BLUEPRINT FOR DEMOCRACY INTRODUCTION The democratic aspirations of Nicaraguans have been suppressed by dictatorships of both left and right for most of their nation's history. Yet the chances for democracy's emergence in Nicaragua seem better now than ever before. Just this week, the United Nicaraguan Opposition (UNO) and the Southern Opposition Bloc (BOS) issued a manifesto, which is a democratic alternative to the Sandinista political program. When the Marxist Sandinista regime is finally overthrown by these nationalist democratic forces, Nicaraguans will need the support and cooperation of the Western democracies in developing a truly pluralist system of government and rebuilding their nation's..economy. With the tide in Latin America now running strongly in favor of democracy, Nicaragua could follow the example of' Argentina, Ecuador, Uruguay, and other nations that have experienced a transition from military dictatorship to democratic rule. To do so, however, Nicaragua will need a blueprint for building democracy, once the current Marxist-Leninist Sandinista-regime collapses. Such a plan for pluralism should include: o Drafting a timetable for truly free and fair national elections, beginning with the election of a constituent assembly and ending with concurrent elections for a president, a legislative assembly, and mayoralties/municipal councils; o Assuring Nicaragua's Indian, Creole, and other minorities that they will be free to follow their unique cultural and religious practices in perpetuity; o Revitalizing the Nicaraguan economy through sweeping structural economic reforms: legal guarantee of private property rights; streamlining the government bureaucracy: and privatization of state-owned holdings.
    [Show full text]
  • The Ends of Modernization: Development, Ideology, and Catastrophe in Nicaragua After the Alliance for Progress
    THE ENDS OF MODERNIZATION: DEVELOPMENT, IDEOLOGY, AND CATASTROPHE IN NICARAGUA AFTER THE ALLIANCE FOR PROGRESS A Dissertation Submitted to the Temple University Graduate Board In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY by David Johnson Lee December 2015 Examining Committee Members: Dr. Richard Immerman, Advisory Chair, History, Temple University Dr. Harvey Neptune, History, Temple University Dr. David Farber, History, University of Kansas Dr. Michel Gobat, History, University of Iowa © Copyright 2015 by David Johnson Lee All Rights Reserved ii ABSTRACT This dissertation traces the cultural and intellectual history of Nicaragua from the heyday of modernization as ideology and practice in the 1960s, when U.S. planners and politicians identified Nicaragua as a test case for the Alliance for Progress, to the triumph of neoliberalism in the 1990s. The modernization paradigm, implemented through collusion between authoritarian dictatorship and the U.S. development apparatus, began to fragment following the earthquake that destroyed Managua in 1972. The ideas that constituted this paradigm were repurposed by actors in Nicaragua and used to challenge the dominant power of the U.S. government, and also to structure political competition within Nicaragua. Using interviews, new archival material, memoirs, novels, plays, and newspapers in the United States and Nicaragua, I trace the way political actors used ideas about development to make and unmake alliances within Nicaragua, bringing about first the Sandinista Revolution, then the Contra War, and finally the neoliberal government that took power in 1990. I argue that because of both a changing international intellectual climate and resistance on the part of the people of Nicaragua, new ideas about development emphasizing human rights, pluralism, entrepreneurialism, indigenous rights, and sustainable development came to supplant modernization theory.
    [Show full text]