|
OEA/Ser.L/V/II.53
doc. 25
30 June 1981
Original: Spanish
REPORT ON THE
SITUATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
IN THE REPUBLIC OF NICARAGUA
INTRODUCTION
A.
The First Report of the IACHR on the Situation of Human Rights in
Nicaragua
1.
This is the second report the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR)
has prepared on the situation of human rights in Nicaragua.
The first “Report on the Situation of Human Rights is Nicaragua” (OEA/Ser.L/V/II.45
doc. 16) was the result of the on-site observation that the Commission conducted
between October 3 and 12, 1978. The
present report is unique in that it is the first time the Commission has
returned to a country to observe the performance of a government.
2.
Two years elapsed, almost to the day between the Commission’s first and
second missions to Nicaragua, in October 1978 and October 1980.
Ten months of that two-years period were characterized by a popular
attempts ended abruptly on July 17, 1979, as General Somoza left Nicaragua for
exile in Miami, and the national Guard dispersed in a panicked scramble to find
refuge.
3.
The Commission’s 1978 report deals with the situation of human rights,
during the last years of the administration of General Anastasio Somoza Debayle.
And devotes particular attention to the events that occurred during the
month of September 1978 when the Sandinista National Liberation Front attacked
the National Guard detachments in the principal cities of Nicaragua.
That Report states that the Government retaliated with an intense and
indiscriminate bombardment of civilians and combatants alike in the cities of León,
Masaya, Chinandega and Estelí. The
Report also states that the Somoza Government succeeded, in suppressing the
insurrection after eleven days of fighting, and once the Government had
reestablished control. The
Commission confirmed the reports of numerous atrocities committed by the
National Guard, including mass murders of minors and summary executions of
civilians during house-to-house searches.
B.
The Seventeenth Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign
Affairs
1.
At the request of the Permanent Representative of Venezuela to the
Organization of American States, the Seventeenth Meeting of Consultation of
Ministers of Foreign Affairs was convoked on September 18, 1978, to consider the
events that had occurred in Central American which threatened the peace of the
entire region. On September 23,
1978, the XVII Meeting of Consultation adopted a Resolution which, inter alia,
urged the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to conduct its planned visit
to Nicaragua as soon as possible.
2.
Following its October 3-12, 1978, visit, the Commission expedited the
preparation of its report, which was issued on November 17, 1978, and presented
it to the Seventeenth Meeting of Consultation on December 18 of that year, when
that bode reconvened.
3.
On June 23, 1979, the XVII Meeting of Consultation approved a resolution
which, for the first time in the history of the OAS, and perhaps for the first
time in the history of any international organization;
deprived an incumbent government of a member state of the Organization of
legitimacy, based on the human rights violations committed by that government
against its own population. /
The test of the resolution reads as follows:
WHEREAS:
The
people of Nicaragua are suffering the horrors of a fierce armed conflict that is
causing grave hardships and loss of life, and has thrown the country into a
serious political, social, and economic upheaval.
The
inhumane conduct of the dictatorial regime governing the country, as evidenced
by the report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, is the
fundamental cause of the dramatic situation faced by the Nicaraguan people and;
The
spirit of solidarity that guides Hemisphere relations places an unavoidable
obligation on the American countries to exert every effort within their power,
to put an end to the bloodshed and to avoid the prolongation of this conflict
which is disrupting the peace of the Hemisphere;
THE
SEVENTEENTH MEETING OF CONSULTATION OF MINISTERS
OF
FOREIGN AFFAIRS,
DECLARES:
That the solution of the serious problem, is exclusively within the
jurisdiction of the people of Nicaragua.
That in the view of the Seventeenth Meeting of Consultation of Ministers
of Foreign Affairs this solution should be arrived at on the basis of the
following:
1.
Immediate and definitive replacement of the Somoza regime.
2.
Installation in Nicaraguan territory of a democratic government, the
composition of which should include the principal representative groups, which
oppose the Somoza regime and which, reflects the free will of the people of
Nicaragua.
3.
Guarantee of the respect for human rights of all Nicaraguan, without
exception.
4.
The holding of free elections as soon as possible, that will lead to the
establishment of a truly democratic government that guarantees peace, freedom,
and justice.
RESOLVES:
1.
To Urge the member states to take steps that within their reach to
facilities an enduring and peaceful solution of the Nicaraguan problem on the
bases set forth above, scrupulously respecting the principle of non-intervention
and abstaining from any action that might be in conflict with the above bases or
be incompatible with a peaceful and enduring solution to the problem.
2.
To commit their efforts to promote humanitarian assistance, to the people
of Nicaragua, and to contribute to the social and economic recovery of the
country.
3.
To keep the Seventeenth Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign
Affairs open while the present situation continues.
C.
The establishment of the Government of National Reconstruction
1.
On June 17, 1979, from San José, Costa Rica, the Sandinista National
Liberation Front (FSLC) announced the formation of a five person Junta, or
governing council, of the Provisional Government of national Reconstruction.
Less than one month later, the FSLN appeared assured of a military
victory; it controlled the cities of León, Chinandega, Estelí, Matagalpa and
Masaya.
2.
On July 13, 1979, at a press conference held in Costa Rica, the Junta
announced that it was convinced that the “people’s armed forces could take
Managua and annihilate the National Guard.”
However, at the same time, the Junta put forward a “Plan to Achieve
Peace.” One day earlier, on July
12, 1979, the Junta, seeking OAS support, sent a copy of the plan to the
Secretary General of the Organization, Alejandro Orfila, to be transmitted to
the member states. The text of this document is as follows:
Mr. Secretary General:
As
we are doing with the Foreign Ministers of the members countries of that
Organization, it is our pleasure to place in your hands the document that
contains our “Plan to Achieve Peace” in our heroic and long-suffering
homeland, now that the people of Nicaragua have established their political and
military victory over the dictatorship.
We
have developed that plan on the bases of the resolution adopted by the
Seventeenth Meeting of Consultation on June 23, 1979, a Resolution that is
historic in every respect, as it demands the immediate replacement of the
genocidal Somoza dictatorship, which has now met its end, and backs the
installation in our country of a broad-based, democratic government of the kind
we ourselves are establishing.
Further,
in stating that the solution to the serious problem is exclusively within the
jurisdiction of the people of Nicaragua, that Resolution calls for hemispheric
solidarity in preserving our people right to self-determination.
In
our “Plan to Achieve Peace,” we are presenting to the community of nations
in this hemisphere the purposes that have inspired our Government since its
establishment and as set forth in our documents and policy statements, some of
which we would like to ratify here:
I.
Our firm intention to establish full respect for human rights in our
country, in accordance with the United Nations Universal Declaration of the
Rights and Duties of man and the Charter on Human Rights of the OAS.
That respect has already become evident in the treatment that the
Sandinista National Liberation Front has given to hundreds of prisoners-of-war. Our Government therefore extends an invitation to the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to visit our country as soon
as this new Government is installed.
II.
In order that our installation in Nicaragua come about through a peaceful
and orderly transition, the Government of National Reconstruction would view a
visit to our country by the foreign ministers of the hemisphere as a gesture of
solidarity, and we extend a warm invitation to come.
III.
Our decision to enforce civil justice in our country and to try
incriminated of crimes against our people according to the pre-existing laws.
By their heroic struggle, the people have won the right to let justice
prevail for the first time in half a century, and will do so within the legal
framework and without revenge or indiscriminate reprisals.
IV.
Those who have collaborated with the regime and who wish to leave the
country, and who are not responsible for the genocide that we have suffered or
for other serious crimes that demand trial by the civil courts, may do so with
all necessary guarantees, guarantees which the Government of national
Reconstruction will demonstrate now and henceforth.
The departure of these individuals may be supervised by the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and by the International Red Cross.
V.
The Plan to call Nicaraguans to the first free elections that our country
will have in this century, so that they may elect their representatives to the
city councils and to a constitutional assembly, and the country’s
highest-ranking authorities.
Now, Mr. Secretary General the government of this hemisphere have their
opportunity to publicly declare their solidarity with the fight that our people
have waged to bring democracy and justice to Nicaragua.
With the request that you convey the text of this letter to the foreign
ministers of the OAS, we present our compliments.
JUNTA
OF THE GOVERNMENT OF NATIONAL RECONSTRUCTION
VIOLETA
DE CHAMORRO, SERGIO RAMIREZ MERCADO, ALFONSO ROBELO CALLEJAS, DANIEL ORTEGA
SAAVEDRA, MOISES HASSAN MORALES.
PLAN
OF THE GOVERNMENT OF NATIONAL RECONSTRUCTION
TO
ACHIEVE PEACE
Our
premise is that while it is true that the solution to Nicaragua’s serious
problem, is the exclusive competence of the Nicaraguan People. Hemispheric
solidarity, essential for this plan to take hold, will be accorded in
fulfillment of the Resolution of the Seventeenth Meeting of consultation of
Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the OAS, approved on June 23, 1979.
The
following steps will ensure the immediate and definitive replacement of the
Somoza regime. Already destroyed by
the heroic and combative people of Nicaragua and their vanguard, the Sandinista
national Liberation Front. Rejection
of this plan in favor of a political solution would leave military destruction
of Somocismo as the only recourse; this could go on for weeks and would lead,
unnecessarily, to many more deaths and destruction.
STAGES
OF THE PLAN:
I.
Somoza submits his resignation to his Congress, which in turn accepts it
and turns over the reins of power to the Government of National Reconstruction
in recognition of the backing it has received from all sector of Nicaraguan
society.
II.
Installation of the Government of National Reconstruction.
This Government is made up of representatives of all sectors of
Nicaraguan politics and has received the official support of all.
III.
Immediately after the Government of national Reconstruction has installed
itself in Nicaragua, the member countries of the OAS, especially those that
sponsored or voted in favor of the Resolution, will then recognize it officially
as the legitimate Government of Nicaragua.
IV.
The Government of National Reconstruction will immediately do the
following:
1.
Repeal the Somoza Constitution.
2.
Decree the Fundamental Statute, which shall provisionally govern the
Government of national Reconstruction.
3.
Dissolve the National Congress.
4.
Order the National Guard to cease hostilities and immediately confine
them to barracks with the guarantees that their lives and other rights will be
respected. The officials,
noncommissioned officers and soldiers of the National Guard that so desire may
joint the new national army or civilian life.
The
Sandinista Army will enforce the cease-fire to facilitate fulfillment of these
agreements by maintaining the positions won as of the time of the Decree.
5.
Maintain order by means of those sectors of the National Guard which have
honored the cease-fire and were appointed to these functions by the Government
of National Reconstruction, a task that they will carry out in coordination with
the combatants of the Sandinista Army.
6.
Decree the organic law that will govern the institutions of the State.
7.
Implement the program of the Government of National Reconstruction.
8.
Guarantee the departure from the county of all those military personnel,
Somoza’s functionaries who wish to leave and who are found not to have been
involved in serious crimes against the people.
APPENDIX
I. Resolution of the
Seventeenth Meeting of Consultation on Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the OAS.
APPENDIX
II. Law on Guarantees
APPENDIX
III. Organic Law
APPENDIX
IV. Program of the Government of
National Reconstruction.
Kindly
acknowledge receipt of this message.
Press
Office JUNTA OF THE GOVERNMENT OF NATIONAL RECONSTRUCTION.
3.
On July 16, 1979, General Anastasio Somoza tendered his letter of
resignation to the Nicaraguan Congress, the text of which reads as follows:
Honorable National Congress
People of Nicaragua
Having
consulted the governments that truly have an interest in bringing peace to the
country, I have decided to respect the decision of the Organization of American
States and do hereby resign the Office of the Presidency to which I was elected
by popular vote. My resignation is
irrevocable.
I
have fought against communism and believe that when the truth emerges history
will vindicate me.
A.
Somoza
President
of the Republic
General
Somoza left Managua for Miami, at 5:10 a.m., on July 17, 1979.
4.
As a constitutional formality, in the early morning hours of July 18, the
Nicaraguan congress unanimously elected Francisco Urcuyo Maliaños, the
President of the Chamber of Deputies, to replace Somoza and to facilitate the
transfer of power to the Junta once it reached Managua from Costa Rica.
However, the newly elected President refused to relinquish the Office of
the Presidency and announced that he intended to complete General Somoza’s
term in other words, to serve until May 1981.
Instead of arranging a speedy transfer of power, Urcuyo delivered an
address in which he praised the National Guard and demanded that “all
irregular forces lay down their arms.” Next,
he proceeded to fill all the key posts in the National Guard with young colonels
and lieutenant colonels, following the departure, with General Somoza, of almost
all the senior military officers. The
new Director of the National Guard, Lt. Col. Federico Mejía González, called
on the National Guard “to redouble… their efforts in the current fight.”
5.
Wednesday morning, July 18, three members of the Junta, Sergio Ramírez,
Alfonso Robelo, and Violeta Chamorro, left San José, Costa Rica, for León,
Nicaragua, where they joined fourth Junta member, Daniel Ortega, and declared León
to be the new provisional capital. Interim
President Urcuyo fled to Guatemala, leaving the new National Guard Director in
charge. According to information
received, Mejía, now promoted to General, began negotiations with a Sandinista
representative and with Archbishop Obando y Bravo in the “bunker” of General
Somoza, regarding the terms of National Guard surrender.
In view of the posture that Urcuyo had assumed, the negotiations were no
longer possible on the original cease-fire-terms; as a consequence, the FSLN now
demanded the unconditional surrender of the National Guard.
After the meeting, on e of the participants stated that the talks had
reached an impasse because the Sandinistas insisted on a surrender rather than a
cease-fire in place. At approximately 2:00 a.m., General Mejía presented a list
of the National Guard’s demands, which included retention of all property
belonging to individual officers in exchange for a surrender. The sandinista refused to accept these conditions and all
communications broke off. Shortly
before dawn on July 19, General Mejía, the General Staff of the National Guard,
as well as most of the high-ranking officers, left Nicaragua by plane.
6.
After a night of chaos, which some observers called “the worst night in
the seven weeks of battle,” the Nicaraguan civil war ended early on the
morning of July 19, as Sandinista guerrillas took control of Managua and called
for a cease-fire. At approximately noon that same day, the last of the
commanders of the National Guard, Lt. Col. Fulgencio Largaespada Baez, ordered
his soldiers to surrender. The text
of his communiqué is as follows:
Attention,
Nicaraguans, attention: To the Commands and headquarters, officers,
noncommissioned officers and enlisted personnel of the Nicaraguan National
Guard:
In
the name of the General Staff of the Nicaraguan National Guard and with the
approval of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) and of the Junta of
the Government of National Reconstruction, I, Lt. Col. Fulgencio Largaespada
Baez, do hereby inform you of the following:
1.
The withdrawal of the General Staff of the National Guard, under the
command of General Federico Mejía has led to the disintegration of our armed
corps.
2.
The victorious position that the Sandinista Front has held and continues
to hold throughout the entire national territory has brought an end to the war
waged against the Sandinista Front and the defeat of the National Guard.
3.
To prevent further bloodshed and useless loss of innocent lives, National
Guard noncommissioned officers and enlisted personnel are to obey the following
orders:
A.
Immediate cease-fire at all command posts and on all war fronts.
B.
Deposition of weapons in your respective headquarters or posts at the
following shelters: Red Cross stations, churches and embassies.
All these places will be respected by the victorious forces of the
Sandinista National Liberation Front.
C.
White flags are to be displayed wherever armed soldiers are to be found;
this will be regarded as a sign of unconditional surrender.
D.
Once the orders issued by the joint National Directorate of the
Sandinista national Liberation Front and the Junta of the Government of National
Reconstruction have been carried out, the life and physical safety of every
soldier who surrenders will be guaranteed.
This
call does not constitute a betrayal of anyone or of anything.
To the contrary, it represents the dignity invested in the National
Guard, on behalf of the wellbeing of our long-suffering people.
This I swear before the altar of country and of God, our Lord.
The
present communiqué has been drafted jointly and with the authorization of
Commander Humberto Ortega Saavedra, on behalf of the joint National Directorate
of the FSLN and of the Junta of the Government of National Reconstruction.
Effective
immediately.
(Signed)
Fulgencio Largaespada Baez, Chief, of the General Staff of the Nicaraguan
National Guard.
7.
On July 20, the Junta of the Government of national Reconstruction was
installed in Managua.
8.
On July 31, the then Chairman of the Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights, Dr. Andrés Aguilar, sent the following cable to the Nicaraguan Junta
concerning its invitation to the Commission to visit Nicaragua once the new
government was installed in power:
Date:
31 July 1979
To: JUNTA OF THE GOVERNMENT OF NATIONAL
RECONSTRUCTION
MANAGUA (NICARAGUA)
THE
SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES HAS BROUGHT TO THE
ATTENTION OF THIS COMMISSION THE COMMUNICATION THAT WAS ADDRESSED TO HIM BY
THAT JUNTA FROM SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA ON 12 JULY 1979.
WE HAVE NOTED WITH SATISFACTION THAT THE FIRST POINT ON THE “PLAN TO
ACHIEVE PEACE”. THAT THE JUNTA PROPOSES TO DEVELOP IS TO ESTABLISH IN
NICARAGUA, FULL RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AS WELL AS OTHER POINTS IN THE PLAN
AIMED AT GUARANTEEING, IN PARTICULAR, THE RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS, THE RIGHT OF
RESIDENCE AND TRANSIT AND THE RIGHT OF SUFFRAGE AND OF PARTICIPATION IN
GOVERNMENT. WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR
THE INVITATION TO VISIT NICARAGUA EXTENDED TO THE COMMISSION IN THAT
COMMUNICATION. IT SHALL BE OUR PLEASURE TO ACT UPON THAT INVITATION, ON A DATE
THAT WE SHALL FIX BY MUTUAL AGREEMENT. AND TO COOPERATE WITH THAT JUNTA, IN
ANY WAY THAT MAY CONTRIBUTE TO RESPECT FOR AND PROMOTION OF THE FUNDAMENTAL
RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS UPHELD IN THE AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS AND
DUTIES OF MAN AND IN THE CHARTER OF THE OAS.
ENCOURAGED BY THE FOOD INTENTIONS EXPRESSED IN THE COMMUNICATION TO THE
SECRETARY GENERAL, WE HOPE THAT THIS JUNTA WILL CONSIDER THE POSSIBILITY OF
RATIFYING, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, THE AMERICAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS OR
PACT OF SAN JOSE, WHICH ENTERED INTO FORCE ON JULY 18 1978.
ANDRES
AGUILAR M.
CHAIRMAN
INTER-AMERICAN
COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
D. Ratification
of the American Convention on Human Rights
1.
On September 25, 1979, three members of the Junta, Daniel Ortega, Sergio
Ramírez and Alfonso Robelo deposited the instrument of ratification of the
American Convection on Human Rights, on behalf of the Government of national
Reconstruction of Nicaragua.
2.
Decree Law No. 174, published in La Gaceta on November 26, 1979, gave the
American Convention on Human Rights the force of internal law in Nicaragua.
/
3.
On March 3, 1980, the entire text of the American Convention was
published in “La Gaceta.”
E. The invitation from the
Government of Nicaragua
1.
On July 12, 1979, in a communication sent from San José, Costa Rica, to
the Secretary General of the OAS, the Junta of the Government of national
Reconstruction invited the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to visit
Nicaragua.
2.
Later, on September 25, 1979, during their visit to Washington, D.C.,
three members of the government Junta, Revolutionary Commander Daniel Ortega,
Dr. Sergio Ramírez and Ing. Alfonso Robelo, accompanied by the Foreign Minister
of the Republic, Miguel D’Escot, in addition to depositing the instrument of
ratification of the American Convention on Human Rights (Pact of San José),
again extended the invitation to the Commission.
3.
Later, and for the third time, the Government of National Reconstruction
sent as Special Ambassador Dr. Leonte Herdocia Ortega to visit the Commission
and reconfirm the invitation to conduct the on-site observation in Nicaragua.
4.
During its forty-eight session, in December 1979, the Commission received
the Special Ambassador of the Government of Nicaragua.
5.
The Commission accepted the invitation, and later agreed on October 6,
1980, as the starting date of the visit.
F. Activities
of the Commission during the on-site observation
1.
In accordance with Article 51 or the Regulations of the Commission, a
Special Commission was appointed to conduct the on-site observations in
Nicaragua. The Special Commission
was composed of the following members of the Commission:
Professor Tom J. Farer, Chairman; Dr. Marco Gerardo Monroy Cabra, First
Vice Chairman; Dr. Francisco Bertrand Galindo, Second Vice chairman; Professor
Carlos A. Dunshee de Abranches; Dr. Luis Demetrio Tinoco Castro and Dr. César
Sepúlveda. Because of previous
commitments, Dr. Andrés Aguilar excused himself.
|
