Papal suspension against Miguel d'Escoto is lifted

Miguel d'Escoto was ordained as a priest of the Roman Catholic Church more than fifty years ago. As a Nicaraguan, he was the first non-US citizen to join the Maryknoll order. Like many other Maryknoll priests of the day, Miguel confronted a violent, oppresive social order in the world. As an adherent and contributor to the set of ideas known today as liberation theology, Miguel identified with the oppressed people and lived cruel, violent opposition, along with many others in the Maryknoll order. But unlike the other priests of his order, his experiences were in his home country. Nicaragua lived under a right-wing dictatorship which crushed opposition violently, and maintained social structures that kept education levels and life expectancies abysmal for the majority of its citizens.

Miguel participated in the social processes which eventually led to the abdication and departure of the Nicaraguan dictator, Anastasio Somoza Debayle, and he served the Nicaraguan government more than ten years as foreign minister. The revolutionary government that succeeded the dictatorship faced a civil war in which the US government provided the principal financial and material support for the contra opposition. As a priest in Roman Catholic Church and an active member of the Sandinista government of Nicaragua, Miguel also faced the opposition of the hierarchy of his church. Pope John Paul II applied a suspension a divinis to Miguel, twenty-nine years ago, in the darkest moments of the cold war.

Today, Miguel is celebrating the lifting of his supension. Pope Francis recently lifted the papal order against Miguel, and Nicaragua is celebrating with him. Today, 26 August 2014, there will be a celebration at the First Baptist Church (on the grounds of the Baptist Hospital) in his honor.

Downtown Managua

Tourists visiting Nicaragua often avoid the capital, Managua. The city is not too large, as capital cities go, but it's not particularly user-friendly for the uninitiated, especially for those who don't speak Spanish. Nonetheless, Managua is the epicenter of Nicaraguan society, and all Nicaraguans refer to it for its abundant cultural activities. 

An identifying feature of Managua is the legacy of a terrible earthquake in 1972, in which thousands were killed and most citizens of the capital were left homeless. Rubble can still be found in the capital, and half-destroyed buildings are occupied by squatters living in unimaginably insecure and degrading conditions, in an area once graced with urban, middle-class architecture. Nonetheless, a few structures remain from the past, and there are other gems in Managua, too. Here are some photos from downtown Managua, near the epicenter of the terrible 1972 earthquake. 

Managua "old" cathedral, now in ruins. Photo by Joyce Procure.

The former downtown area of Managua languished for decades after the earthquake. The cathedral unusable, entire neighborhoods turned to rubble, and shells of buildings inhabited by indigent people in appallling conditions. Some functions continued in downtown Managua after the earthquake, for instance, the National Palace was left strong, as was the Bank of America building. But ruins and extreme poverty were everywhere, along with all the social ills that accompany them.

Side view of the ruins of the "old" Managua cathedral. Photo by Joyce Procure.

The area has recently become dramatically revitalized through the injection of large sums of money from the government. Parks have been restored and police are present day and night to make them safe. Slums and rubble have been cleared in several areas, replaced by housing projects. Decent housing for poor people has become a primary priority again, after a long hiatus.

The National Palace withstood the 1972 earthquake intact. Its strong, imposing lines suggest  German styles from the 1930's. Photo by Joyce Procure.

Only a few years back, a visit to this area was best left to the valiant. Today, the area is safe and is gaining traffic and life. Managua once again has a center.

The banners strung on the poles are based on the blue-and-white national flag, and the red-and-black Sandinista flag. Behind the flags are found the tombs of  Sandinista leaders Carlos Fonseca, Santos Lopez, and Tomas Borge. Photo by Joyce Procure.

Managua continues to be the center for culture in Nicaragua, where concerts and plays are found and all kinds of attractions are found, particularly for the person who speaks Spanish.

The Presidential Palace was built during the last decade of the twentieth century with financing from Taiwan. Photo by Joyce Procure.

The Nicaraguan National Assembly occupies what is known as the Bank of America Building in downtown Managua. This building was among the very few multistory structures that survived the 1972 Managua earthquake. Photo by Joyce Procure.

Prior to the 1972 earthquake, the Managua Cathedral was utilized by the upper classes of Managua.

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movies about Nicaragua

Much of Nicaragua's cultural and political history is captured in the cameras of diverse filmmakers through the years. Here we present another set of films that tell stories new and old. Please let us know which films you like, and why! 

Nicaragua-A Nation's Right to Survive. This 1983 documentary directed by John Pilger presents the difficulties facing the young, revolutionary Nicaragua, crippled by aggression from the superpower to the North. "The issue is that the United States has no right to invade and humiliate a small country" (A. C. Sandino). This film includes footage of US biplanes in attacks on Ocotal, where the first aerial bombing in the world was conducted in 1926-before the Spanish massacre at Guernica.

Land  "Next time you pack your sunscreen bring your gun". A documentary video about the housing development boom on the Nicaraguan Pacific coast. If you are thinking of buying property in Nicaragua, see this first. Directed by Julian Pinder, is available on Torrents.

Pictures from a Revolution by Susan Meiselas. "PICTURES FROM A REVOLUTION is also a smart, unvarnished tale of the evolution of images as they run headlong into popular culture and political agendas". 

The Mosquito Coast, based on the book by Paul Theroux, tells a Gulliveresque story set on Nicaragua's Caribbean coast. Starring Harrison Ford as a dreamer wanting to change the Nicaraguans, only he still does not even know them. 

Nicaragua: An Unfinished Revolution presents social and political issues facing the Sandinistas in their second chance at social transformation in Nicaragua. This video, produced by Al-Jazeera, is presented below.

No Pasaran, a film by the Australian filmmaker David Bradbury, covers the history of Nicaragua from the construction of the Somoza dynasty until the Nicaraguan Sandinista Revolution. 

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The Laguna de Apoyo Movie List

Nicaragua's rich socio-political history is the stuff of movies, and some good ones have come from it. Here we present our list, movies that lovers of Nicaragua should see. Let´s go to the movies!

1. Carla's Song (1996)
A Nicaraguan woman carries the scars of war with her to Glasgow, where she meets a man who helps her face her past and return to her country and love. Set during the contra war in revolutionary Nicaragua. Directed by Ken Loach.

Carla's Song Trailer

2. Alsino and the Condor (1983)
Best Foreign Film Academy Award 1983
Alsino dreams of flying. and his village is visited by aircraft raining destruction. An analogy for the apologists of fascism in its many rebirths throughout Latin America. Directed by Miguel Littin.

3. Walker (1987) Directed by Alex Cox
William Walker was a good man gone bad. As he sank morally, he dragged a nation downward with him. Ed Harris plays the lead role brilliantly, in a cleverly constructed retelling of the first US citizen president of Nicaragua. This movie portrays the Walker experience with broad artistic license. Music by Joe Strummer from The Clash.

Walker-Trailer

3. Under Fire (1983)
Nick Nolte and Gene Hackman are seasoned war reporters, documenting the insurrection against the Somoza dictatorship in Nicaragua. Based loosely on the assassination of ABC reporter Bill Stewart in 1979. Soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith.

5. La Yuma (2009)
Two sports shine in Nicaragua: Baseball, and boxing. A most unlikely boxing film - about a woman boxer. Directed by Florence Jaguey.

La Yuma (The complete film)

La Yuma-trailer

What is your favorite film about Nicaragua? Please let us know. If we have not included it here, we would like to see it and share your interest with others, too.
Estacion Biologica FUNDECI/GAIA sponsors and operates the Laguna de Apoyo Spanish Language School. We have the oldest "study Spanish abroad" program in Nicaragua. Please visit us when you are in Laguna de Apoyo.

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Sandino The Movie

The most iconic figure in the history of Nicaragua is Augusto C. Sandino. The illegitimate child of a poor servant girl, a self-made man, and emphatic defender of sovereignty, was betrayed and killed ignominiously when he opted to negotiate for peace. His death launched a single-family dynasty which, not coincidentally, ended at the hands of a new generation of rebels who adopted his name for their movement.

Miguel Littin, a Chilean leftist filmmaker, undertook the auspicious project of tracing the remarkable life of Sandino on film. The result is presented here, broken into parts of about 10 minutes each. This film receives our highest recommendation, because it tells one of the great stories which define why Nicaragua is so special. One can't know Nicaragua, its history, society and culture, without understanding Sandino, and one can't understand Sandino without loving Nicaragua. Patria libre o muerte!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

Part 10

Part 11

Part 12

Part 13

Part 14

Part 15

The Spanish courses offered at Estacion Biologica include a historical perspective and legacy of Augusto Cesar Sandino in today's Nicaragua. The modern term sandinista incorporates concepts of struggle, social justice, sovereignty and national dignity, and a rich history has been played out in which the term has been applied. The term holds both political and broad cultural connotations today in Nicaragua, and our Spanish teachers have personal experience in these concepts, to make your Spanish training directed toward the circumstances found in Nicaragua.

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Revolutionary Music-Nicaraguan Concert for Peace 1983-video

The year was 1983. The cause was the Nicaraguan "contra" civil war, seen from within as attacks from outside. Sandinista Nicaragua faced a formidable enemy in the United States, the byword was defiance. Music was the medium. The event was the Concert for Peace, held in Managua, free to all, with musicians from throughout the continent. As this event demonstrated, the Nicaraguan Revolution meant something very special troughout the world. Among the performers in this video: Luis Enrique Mejia Godoy, Carlos Mejia Godoy, Amparo Ochoa, Adrian Goizueta, Mercedes Sosa, Silvio Rodriguez. Music and Revolution were the theme. 

It's to wake up and break the muzzle and chains,

It's to conjugate and feel the verb “love” without limits,

It's to get the moon to give us its bread and a kiss

When we free the earth of what imprisons our dreams.

It's to write in the people's book with blood and fire,

The names of the anonymous sowers of this field.

It's to talk of hope And the love that costs us

It's to make grow in the womb of history our footprints

It's the reason of the language of man and his freedom,

That, even if he has to kill, love is his objective

That the animal heart of an imperfect man,

Like a bird flying toward love, takes flight to make a nest in your breast.

This is why I must conclude before my guitar sleeps

That no blow is fatal if you don't fear death

That to stay awake while guarding the trenches

Is the task of one to love even in time of war.

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Miguel d´Escoto Brockmann speaks on his term in the General Assembly of the United Nations

The President of the Board of Directors of FUNDECI, Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann, speaks on his term as President of the General Assembly of the United Nations, in New York.

Remembering Benjamin Linder

Benjamin Linder Lives in the Hearts of Those Who Follow.

Ben Linder died 24 years ago this week, victim of a senseless act of war. He was killed in a targetted, terrorist attack, along with two Nicaraguan co-workers, while building a small hydroelectric dam project to provide electricity to San Jose de Bocay, in northeastern Nicaragua. The arms, training, and motivation behind his death were provided by members of the US security apparatus. Did Ben Linder threaten the US government or people with his actions? The following editorial was published on the twentieth anniversary of his death (El Nuevo Diario 28 April, 2007).

Recordando a Benjamín Linder

Jeffrey McCrary *
Desde el primer momento, hace veinte años atrás, que tuve conocimiento de Nicaragua, ésta ocupó mi conciencia, aunque no me di cuenta del momento y de sus repercusiones hasta mucho depués, gradualmente. Ese día en que Benjamín Linder, un joven norteamericano, ingeniero, payaso completo con su narizón rojo, maquillaje y uniciclo, murió asesinado en San José de Bocay, un 28 de abril de 1987.

No supe que este maravilloso hombre existía hasta unas semanas después de su muerte, cuando sus padres visitaron mi entonces ciudad de habitación, Houston, Texas. Sus padres me narraron en términos sencillos y directos la breve historia de Ben en Nicaragua como voluntario en la construcción de proyectos de generación de energía sostenible para brindar electricidad a pueblos remotos por primera vez. El pueblo de El Cua recibió electricidad y estuvo en camino un segundo proyecto hidroeléctrico en San José de Bocay. Aún recuerdo sentirme conmovido cuando me relataron sobre sus esfuerzos para ayudar a gente opromida por inmensas escalas de pobreza, ignorancia e injustia, y cómo su vida se acortó cuando se hizo blanco de un lado que luchaba contra otro en una guerra salvaje que consumió a ese inocente y pecoso con igual ferocidad. Perdió su vida con una bala tirada a poca distancia después de caer herido al ser impactado por un morterazo, dejando así en camino su segundo proyecto de generación hidroeléctrica para que otras almas valientes lo terminaran.

Para muchos ciudadanos estadounidenses como yo, Nicaragua se hizo un caldo de ideas e ideologías, de estrategias de resistencia y de combate, y de protestas pacíficas rotas por chorros de sangre. Ben Linder y muchos otros, en ambos lados de esa década terrible, se hicieron héroes de algún tipo, y sus imágenes fueron muchas veces utilizadas para hacer llamados a favor de su causa política sagrada. Pero la historia de Ben, quien nunca deseaba ser mártir y héroe, hizo llamado a algún sentido privado mío. Como Jesús siglos atrás convirtió el agua en vino, Ben hizo electricidad de ella para pueblos de los cerros remotos. Me fascinó el concepto de que uno puede usar sus talentos al servicio de otros, tanto como me decepcionó y confundió la agridulzura de sus esmeros.

Estos veinte años me han regalado muchas experiencias y conocimientos sobre los cuales me pongo a reflexionar. De los muchos elementos del ser nicaragüense que aprendí a admirar y respetar, uno es su enorme capacidad para perdonar. Es increíble concebir que tantos de los mismos hombres y mujeres que yo conozco y respeto hoy en día, pueden haber ordenado, ejecutado, apoyado o caído como víctimas en tantos actos bárbaros en tantos lados de ese conflicto, tan sólo dos décadas atrás. Me deja atónito cuando aprecio la capacidad de curar las viejas heridas entre gente que ha sufrido enormes pérdidas, más aún cuando veo viejos enemigos juntarse las manos en causas compartidas. El sufrimiento del campesinado ya es una bandera bajo la cual los nicaragüenses se unen más que nunca. También, las conflictivas connotaciones partidarias del trabajo de Linder se han desteñido con los años y con los avances en una agenda más común que nunca. Una vez, Linder fue considerado un enemigo por algunos aquí; ahora, la gran mayoría de los nicaragüenses coinciden con su misión.

Otro elemento del ser nicaragüense que me ha atraído es el sentido de causa que impulsó la revolución y continúa motivando a muchos hacia vocaciones que compensan el espíritu mucho más que el bolsillo. Un entero estilo de vida se puede hallar en nicaragüenses que laboran en instituciones sin fines de lucro, enseñan en aulas y sirven el sistema médico en medio de condiciones abismales; pasan horas incontables en la lucha constante para hacer de Nicaragua un lugar decente para todos, y de muchas otras maneras manifiestan la dignidad del hombre y la mujer en su vida cotidiana. La compasión hacia los oprimidos y sufridos es tan invariablemente manifestada por el ser nicaragüense en tantas dimensiones de su vida, desde sus preferencias en el empleo hasta su trato a los niños en los semáforos. Benjamín Linder no fue el primero ni será el último que trabaje al servicio de otros menos afortunados, pero él fue quien me despertó la idea de que yo podría hacer algo, aunque fuera minísculo, para otros en Nicaragua. Tal vez yo nunca podría hacer a los niños reír con mi humor, sin embargo, aprecio mucho el viaje que he seguido estos años al lado de este país y su gente. Aunque nunca me conociste, me trajiste aquí. Gracias, Ben.

* Biólogo

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Comentarios de nuestros lectores

Mike
Sr. Jefry : Gracias por recordarnos las cualidades de Ben Linder! Algunos nicaraguenses podríamos tratar de imitar la generosidad y el internacionalismo de Ben!

LENIN FISHER
Homenaje a quien homenaje merece.

Yasser Cohen
A Benjamin lo mataron los enemigos de la paz y del progreso en Nicaragua.

El Nuevo Diario - Managua, Nicaragua - 28 de abril de 2007

Read more about the life and death of Benjamin Linder here. This quote from the biography of Ben Linder by Joan Kruckewitt:

On April 30, 1987, under a fierce afternoon sun, a funeral procession wound its way through the cobbled streets of Matagalpa, a small city in Nicaragua. Daniel Ortega, the country's president, and his wife, Rosario Murillo, followed the casket, slowly walking arm in arm with two Americans, David and Elisabeth Linder from Portland, Oregon. The Linders' son and daughter, John and Miriam, walked beside them. Oscar Blandón, a hydroplant operator and electrician from the remote village of El Cuá, walked alone, head hidden underneath a baseball cap, a sentinel that never strayed from the casket. Clowns from the Nicaraguan National Circus followed behind, their painted mouths turned downwards. Behind them walked thousands of Nicaraguans and foreigners. The funeral procession stretched for more than seven blocks. 

If you would like to volunteer in Nicaragua, follow in Ben's footsteps and make life better for poor Nicaraguans. FUNDECI/GAIA can arrange volunteer projects for you in Nicaragua. 

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Somos Hijos del Maíz: Luis Enrique Mejia Godoy

The US embargo against Nicaragua was part of a strategy to starve the Nicaraguans into submission to the will of the greatest military power in the world. Wheat and flour, principally products of US origin, became "illegal". Nicaraguans rediscovered their connection to maize, through the necessity brought onto them by the scarcity of wheat, as depicted in this song, written and sung by Luis Enrique Mejia Godoy.

Si nos quitan el pan 
nos veremos en la obligación 
de sobrevivir como lo hicieron nuestros abuelos 
con el maíz fermentado

en la sangre 
de los héroes 

The ancestors of the Nicaraguans used corn for a multitude of recipes, many of which are still found in the popular culture today. This song reminds us of the importance of maize in the culture and in the politics of Nicaragua.

Somos hijos del maíz 
constructores de surcos y de sueños 
y aunque somos un país pequeño 
ya contamos con más de mil inviernos 
un millón de manos floreciendo 
en la tarea interminable de sembrar 
de abril a mayo, labrando, sembrando 
tapizcando, desgranando 
almacenando para la guerra y la paz! 

Food should never be used as an instrument of war!

Luis Enrique Mejia Godoy and Mancotal

Luis Enrique Mejia Godoy

Carlos and Luis Enrique Mejia Godoy

Because the land belongs to the people who work it!

Chicha de maíz, chicha pujagua 

chicha raizuda, pelo de maíz 
el atoooool 
Chingue de maíz, nacatamal 
atolillo el rerequeee 

Tamalpizque, totoposte, marquezote, chocolate, 
pinolillo,pinol y tiste, buñuelo, chilote, elote, posole, 
tortilla, guirila, rosquilla, empanada 

Es decir el macizo 
e irreversible alimento del pueblo 
es decir el maciso 
e irreversible alimento del pueblo... 

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Guerrero del Amor: Duo Guardabarranco

Rosey Soley composed a poem dedicated to her lover, fallen in the terrible conflict between Nicaraguans. Salvador Cardenal set the words to music, and here it is presented by Salvador and Katia, as Duo Guardabarranco. This song embodied the spirit of a generation dedicated to give their lives for the Revolution. Thank you, Rosey, Katia, and Salvador, for leaving us this beautiful homage to love and conflict in Nicaragua. The role of testimonial music in the Nicaraguan Revolution was tremendous, as can be imagined by the imagery and words of this song.

Guerrero del Amor

Warrior of Love (Rosey Soley and Salvador Cardenal)

I’ll trade you a song for the courage of your young combatant hands,

Welded to the metal with which you will save us.

I’ll trade this love of life and its promises

For the cold of your feet in the swamps,

Making fear and homesickness burn you.

Anonymous author of the dawn,

Silent deer in the mountain,

Warrior of love;

Son of these times, windmill,

Manchild born in the jungle

To go until the end, to the victory

I’ll trade you those 20 years, duplicated

Because of this necessary war,

For the silvery flower of hope

Te cambio una canción por el coraje
de tus jovenes manos combatientes,
fundidas al metal con que nos salvas.

Te cambio este amar la vida y sus promesas
por el frio de tus pies entre los suampos;
fraguando que se te quema el miedo y la nostalgia.

Autor anónimo de la alborada,
venado silencioso en la montaña,
guerrero del amor
hijo de este tiempo, remolino
hombre niño parido pues en plena selva
para llegar al fin a la victoria para llegar al fin.

Te cambio esos 20 años duplicados
a causa de esta guerra necesaria,
por la carnosa flor de la esperanza.

Autor anónimo de la alborada,
venado silencioso en la montaña;
guerrero del amor,
hijo de este tiempo, remolino
hombre niño parido pues en plena selva
para llegar al fin a la victoria para llegar al fin.

Autor anónimo de la alborada,
venado silencioso en la montaña;
guerrero del amor,
hijo de este tiempo, remolino
hombre niño parido pues en plena selva
para llegar al fin a la victoria para llegar al fin.
(Canción Dedicada a "Sandino" General de Hombres Libres 1983)