Nicaragua: Part II

So, we were discussing politics.

This is Nicaragua's flag:

It was adopted in 1971, according to this website. With the creation of the FSLN (Frente Sandinista Liberación Nacional), Nicaragua underwent a major civil war. The Sandinista Front needed a banner under which to march:

or

The group was started by Carlos Fonseca against the Somoza dictatorships. Like I said, there was a war. When the FSLN's candidate Daniel Ortega won the presidency in 1984, it was declared a victory of the Revolution. After Daniel Ortega's first term, he ended up losing 3 consecutive times. It was after the third, legend has it, that Ortega actually asked a Northamerican interior designer what was wrong with his approach to politics that he wasn't winning. The designer thought it was the colors of the FSLN flag Ortega sported on his platform--the colors were too bold. With that, Ortega changed the "official" colors to a baby pink and Easter yellow. They can be seen on all propaganda signs throughout the city. (Please visit this site for more Nicaraguan political flags).

______________________________________________________

UPDATE: There is also a theory about Ortega's wife, Rosario Murillo, being the cause for the change. Murillo is well known for her jumbled theology that mixes the teachings of Indian Guru Sai Baba, the teachings of Jesus Christ, Gen. Sandino's personal philosophy, and some native indigenous beliefs. According to the theory, she suggested the change to pastels because they channel positive energy.

_______________________________________________________

After Ortega won the presidency again in 2006, a small group of Sandinistas broke off of the main group. They call themselves the Movimiento Renovación Sandinista (MRS), or the Sandinista Renovation Movement. Their new colors are orange and black, but I couldn't find a picture on the web...

Led by Dora María Tellez, who fought as a guerrilla in the FSLN, the party protests Ortega's presidency, saying it is becoming a dictatorship.

This post is long enough! Next up: more -itos!

Nicaragua: Part I

Whew! Here I am! Sorry this has been so long in coming--I'm still getting lots of homework that's due the next day...

The first thing I thought when our land bus (the TransNica line) arrived in Managua was "Wow, it's hot." I loved it. For once, I could actually feel my fingers and toes...
We were picked up by some sort of a school bus from the bus station, and were driven to a seminary-type place called the Centro Nehemias. The Centro was affiliated with several church groups and Intercultural relationship organizations, and we stayed there because they encouraged international travel. Very nice place. Because it was evening, we divied up the rooms and went to bed.

The next day (Tues), we had a charla (a short lecture) and went sight-seeing a little in the bus from the Centro. Nicaragua is very political.

POLITICS:
The Nica government has suffered many uprisings and has been overthrown many times. The general timeline of important events can be seen on the BBC website timeline (we were given this article to read, and I was able to recover it online as well). But, here's a passage you might find interesting:

Independence:
1838 - Nicaragua becomes fully independent.
1860 - British cede control over the country's Caribbean coast to Nicaragua.
1893 - General Jose Santos Zelaya, a Liberal, seizes power and establishes dictatorship.
1909 - US troops help depose Zelaya.
1912-25 - US establishes military bases.
1927-33 - Guerrillas led by Augusto Cesar Sandino campaign against US military presence.
1934 - Sandino assassinated on the orders of the National Guard commander, General Anastasio Somoza Garcia.
Somoza family dictatorship:
1937 - General Somoza elected president, heralding the start of a 44-year-long dictatorship by his family.
1956 - General Somoza assassinated, but is succeeded as president by his son, Luis Somoza Debayle.
1961 - Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) founded.
1967 - Luis Somoza dies and is succeeded as president by his brother, Anastasio Somoza.
1978 - Assassination of the leader of the opposition Democratic Liberation Union, Pedro Joaquin Chamorro, triggers general strike and brings together moderates and the FSLN in a united front to oust Somoza.
Sandinista revolution and US subversion:
1979 - FSLN military offensive ends with the ouster of Somoza.
1980 - Somoza assassinated in Paraguay; FSLN government led by Daniel Ortega nationalises and turns into cooperatives lands held by the Somoza family.
1982 - US-sponsored attacks by Contra rebels based in Honduras begin; state of emergency declared.
1984 - Daniel Ortega elected president; US mines Nicaraguan harbours and is condemned by the World Court for doing so.
1987-88 - Nicaraguan leadership signs peace agreement and subsequently holds talks with Contra; hurricane leaves 180,000 people homeless.
Post-Sandinista era:
1990 - US-backed centre-right National Opposition Union defeats FSLN in elections; Violeta Chamorro becomes president.
1996 - Arnoldo Aleman elected president.
2000 - FSLN win Managua municipal elections.
2001 November - Liberal party candidate Enrique Bolaños beats his Sandinista party counterpart, former president Daniel Ortega, in presidential election.
2002 March - Opposition Sandinista party re-elects Daniel Ortega as its leader despite his three consecutive defeats since 1990.
2002 August - Former president Arnoldo Aleman charged with money laundering, embezzlement during his term in office.
2003 December - Arnoldo Aleman jailed for 20 years for corruption. A year later he is transferred to house arrest.
2006 April - Free trade deal with the US comes into effect. Nicaragua's Congress approved the Central American Free Trade Agreement (Cafta) in October 2005.
2006 October - President Bolaños unveils plans to build a new ship canal linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
MPs approve a tough new bill that bans abortions, including in cases where the mother's life is at risk.
2006 November - Ex-president Daniel Ortega is returned to power in elections.

Please note that these have been copied and pasted. I've also omitted some facts that were irrelevant to this post. For more information, check the link above.

I am off to eat lunch. I will continue to write afterward.