Nicaragua Revolution
Introduction
The Nicaragua situation qualified as a revolution based on a number of factors. The paper looks at the factors that led to the Nicaragua revolution amongst them the assassination of its top leaders, foreign involvement, mass protests and the insurrection that ultimately led to victory for the warring factions. The paper effectively discusses that what took place in Nicaragua was a revolution that was sparked by anger, lack of a leader to look up to and the desire to seek revenge for the persons that assassinated their leaders. This process later led to the factions to take up leadership in the country through a set of process discussed in the paper.
Fonseca’s Death
In the 1970s, the country was plagued by successive deaths of great leaders. In the last phase towards to the ouster of Somoza and success to the Sandinistas had started in 1976 which was the same date the marked the death of Fonseca. This death was not long after the passing on another legendary, Carlos Aguero a year later. The death of these great leaders as well as others who are not named created an empty space in the FSLN top hierarchy and lacking in the members of the group. According to Somoza, with the passing of Fonseca would bring to a halt the FSLN movement which quite closely had taken place.
Hardening of Factions
The FSLN eventually lived to see another day though it was too weak than initially. The factions that were present prior to the passing away of Fonseca make rigid stances, and the top leaders of these warring factions never got on a table for about two years after the passing of their leader. Henry Ruiz, the leader of GPP aimed to block the National Guard from falling. Victor Tirado, leader of the TI faction went to Honduras to strategize (Eakin). The Proletariat Tendency had undertaken a number of steps to have itself be on the fore front and overthrow the other faction; it sought support of various sections amongst them being students, Christians, farmers and laborers, which the other faction sought similarly (Belli). The two factions termed themselves to the genuine supporters of Fonseca, though they were shifting further from the ideology that was initially there in the 60s. The two factions published list of things that they would do for the people of Nicaragua, both of which had the basing of the Fonseca ideology, and as stated, they were not in position to mend fences.
Rise in Tension
In the end of 1977, the associates to the factions were on the rise in the three tendencies in the developed regions of the country while in the rural areas it was quite limited. The character and the impact of the FLSN were on a high quite fast when compared to the associates. In the same year, Somoza did away with the siege that had been there three years ago, showing the predicament that was there in Somoza political setup. Protesting groups were emerging, in most cases with close alignment to FLSN like the Women association; AMPRAC, the main issue for the country being globally known as Somoza (Belli). A year later Somoza elevated pressure, and with the help of FSLN efforts and unplanned mass actions, the speed at which the actions took place was on the increase. The brass of the Union, Joaquin Chomorrow, was killed. This led to several protests in the streets as a countrywide protest strike that took up a lot of time leading the creation of militia groupings. A strike by the educational fraternity led to the shutting down of the universities and almost all of the high schools too in the same year. Three months later Sandinistas groupings organized a major grouping known as the United People’s Movement. The country’s palace that was located in Managua was taken by militia groups known as tercerista in the same year. This led to over 3000 politicians and business persons to be held hostage until associates of the FLSN were taken out of prison by Somoza. The unrest took place in the watch of FLSN groupings in major towns in the capital. The three factions engaged in the uprising, which started to seal the contrast that existed in these groups and forge a unified front.
US Interference
The President of the country as well as the US did not back the Somoza rule at this stage, though they similarly did not opt for a control of the revolutionary rule. Carter hence created a commission of Friendly Cooperation and Conciliation so as to engage in operations with the average Broad Opposition Front that did reject Somoza though it was a creation of a conglomerate membership in the ruling body and “Los Doce”, which were the representatives of terceristas. The FAO and the commission strategized so as to do away with Somoza from control though it did not consider the FLSN, hence the Los Doce did not agree with the stance and protested about it, and joined MPU in the new formation, the National Patriotic Front. The FAO did not have it validity any longer in the sight of the people with the absence of Los Doce, and the people hence opted for FLSN and FPN as opposed to the top brass of varied associations that were formed.
Mass Revolutionary Fervor and FSLN Reunification
Parties that supported the revolution were on the rise at a very fast rate in the whole of Nicaragua, and victory was a small distant away that the FLSN grouping had thought of at the time. After the Commission was done away with in 1979, the Somoza attacks took place another time, and this time it was directed to the young people and social movements. The protests were on the increase and later it was a massive movement. Several youths took part in the FLSN and engaged in fights with the Somoza. This made the FLSN to head to a more strict ideology based on Fonseca and connected to a reunification that took place in 1979. A section of people and some from the tendency created the National Directorate that was set to control and manage the reunification of FLSN.
The Ultimate Insurrectionary Period and Victory
In the middle of 1979, youth and the national Guardsmen were in conflict constantly in most towns in the nation comprising of Managua. There was an increase of conflict with the combined rule of FLSN. The intention was to free the towns starting from the National Guard, though the towns in the actual sense freed themselves and in several instances the Guard just gave in. In June a major strike was called by FLSN that would take up much time until Somoza could not stand anymore, and some days after that a revolt started in Managua. As the month came to an end, the FLSN had the management of close to twenty towns in the Pacific region, part of that comprised of Leon and Matagalpa, the biggest towns in Nicaragua. Somoza responded by attacking the working class towns that were close by, destroying them while letting the middle class to go without any harm coming to them, in regards to the insurrection, they were majorly comprised of proletariat. In the meantime as the two sections in Nicaragua were additionally well defined to be FLSN/Sandinista and Somoza/National Guard, the middle class was quite considerate of the FLSN with what was taking place and opted to do something that would that would accord them recognition in the ruling leadership. The middle class organized for them a position in government for them. Later that month the provisionary team was made public with three FLSN associates, the FAO leader Alfonso Robelo and the wife to Chamorro. Elections were set to be done for another parliament that was to be managed by bourgeois. This ruling team took over the leadership of the country the moment Somoza was out of office in July, where later he went into hiding in Miami. This was after giving Francisco Urcuyo to be the one succeeding him. However, Urcuyo went into hiding too in the company of the leader of the National Guard, Colonel Federico Mejia (Eakin). The following day the members of the new ruling team got into Leon which was the provisional capital, on the other hand, the National Guard broke down. The next day, the revolt by the FLSN got into Managua win the midst of great welcome from the locals. The square was made in pleasant manner with huge pictures of Augusto Sandino and Carlos Fonseca that were as ways of remembering the roles that they played in the revolution that led to success.
Conclusion
The Nicaragua uprising was a form of revolution that was stimulated by the vacuum that was formed by the assassination of its leaders. This led to several protests and formation of three factions that sought support from the locals; students, farmers and labor force so as to take up leadership in the country. This eventually ended up with acquisition of the government by the groups that started as an uprising.
Work Cited
Belli, Gioconda. The Country Under My Skin: A Memoir of Love and War. trans. Kristina Cordero. New York: Anchor Books, 2002.
Eakin, Marshall C. The History of Latin America: Collision of Cultures. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
