The Ongoing Eight-Month Epic Struggle in Nicaragua

Guillermo Cortes Dominguez

HAVANA TIMES – Eight months ago, began the epic struggle of the incredible Nicaraguan people which in 1979 overthrew by force the Somoza dictatorship and with the social rebellion of April is prepared to get rid of, this time peacefully, another totalitarian regime, the dictatorship of the Ortega-Murillo family.

I never thought that the struggle would be prolonged, I believed that the dictator would immediately understand the sign that the people were tired, that they do not recognize him as president, that they do not want him and that they demand that he leaves.

But no, Ortega clung to power and since he could not directly use the Army, created another, and before their indolent noses armed paramilitaries with rifles and other weapons of war. Then, together with the Police, they undertook the worse massacre in our history and left a trail of 400 bodies, thousands of wounded, then kidnapped more than 600 people, many of whom were tortured in “El Chipote” and “El Infiernillo,” and in “La Modelo” prison.

They criminalized the protest marches and made it a crime to wave the Nicaraguan flag.

Recently, they confiscated nine civic organizations and three media outlets.

As occupation forces, across the country they imposed a regime of terror, established an undeclared State of Siege and Martial Law and carried out actions inherent of state terrorism. But citizens continue to resist peacefully, the struggle continues.

With actions of civil disobedience, they reiterate their decision to the tyrant. In the celebration of “La Purisima” (the Immaculate Conception) many altars were colored with blue and white and many showed photographs of our martyrs and political prisoners.

Monday night there was a protest picket in “Camino de Oriente” (where this story began); on Thursday there will be a consumers’ strike, people do not stop, with small actions they remind the despot that he has to go, that his time has come.

The Ortega-Murillo family can leave Nicaragua, but one day they will be held accountable to international justice for crimes against humanity and genocide, which are documented in thousands of videos and photographs and the testimony of relatives of the mortal victims, as well as of the wounded, kidnapped and tortured. The countdown is reaching the end.