Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site cornell.UUCP
Path: utzoo!lsuc!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!vax135!cornell!gil
From: gil@cornell.UUCP (Gil Neiger)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: Politics of Oxfam America (& Nicaragua)
Message-ID: <81@cornell.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 24-Jan-86 11:11:46 EST
Article-I.D.: cornell.81
Posted: Fri Jan 24 11:11:46 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 25-Jan-86 22:34:59 EST
References: <1657@bbncca.ARPA> <291@gargoyle.UUCP> <1310@ihuxn.UUCP> <295@pyuxii.UUCP>
Reply-To: gil@cornell.UUCP (Gil Neiger)
Organization: Cornell Univ. CS Dept.
Lines: 29
Summary: 

In article <295@pyuxii.UUCP> tw8023@pyuxii.UUCP (T Wheeler) writes:
>Whatever happened to
>the centerists in Nicarmessedup?  Did they all jump country to
>await the final battle, and to then move back?  

That's close to what's happened.  Part of the strategy of the contras
is to eliminate any political center in Nicaragua that could possibly
be taken seriously either internally or internationally.  By a continuous
escalation of the war, they have forced any political opposition in the
country (center or right) to side with them.

The Sandinistas have proclaimed a policy of political pluralism.  The
elections of November 1984 were said by international observers to be
extremely free and open by Latin American standards.  Nevertheless, if
you were a centrist politician would you want to be someone who tried
to work within the system (whether it was fair or not) when the contras
march into Managua?  Of course not.

It's another example of American foreign policy fighting against democracy
in Latin America and around the world.
-- 
        Gil Neiger 
        Computer Science Department 
        Cornell University 
        Ithaca NY  14853 

{uw-beaver,ihnp4,decvax,vax135}!cornell!gil (UUCP)
gil@Cornell.ARPA (ARPAnet) ; gil@CRNLCS (BITNET)