Congressmen Join Managua March
The contrasts between conditions in Nicaragua and El Salvador, each a signatory to the Guatemala peace accord, are striking.
In Managua, 300 Nicaraguans march in protest against the Sandinista government without harassment or oppressive police presence. In El Salvador, the Administration’s showcase of “incipient democracy,” the tortured bodies of two men are found, bearing the classic signs of death squad methods (Part I, Nov. 9). These are only the latest of renewed killings of those who threaten the power of the ultra-right Salvadoran oligarchy.
Nor does it work to blame the Nicaraguan opposition’s pathetically low turnout on Sandinista “threats.” Managua now has close to 1 million residents. Certainly we should expect from that population a more convincing show of anti-Sandinista sentiment, especially since the gathering “met no resistance.”
It should be clear by now that Washington’s propaganda campaign against the Sandinistas, carried out by surrogates in Nicaragua and Miami, is a scam. El Salvador deserves far more serious criticism.
BILL BECKER
Woodland Hills
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
