Senate Vote Keeps Contra Issue Alive : Will Remain on a War Footing, Ortega Asserts

President Daniel Ortega said Thursday that Nicaragua will stay on a war footing despite Congress’ defeat of new U.S. aid for the Contras. He warned civic opponents not to expect “a process of peace and democracy” until President Reagan comes to terms with the Sandinista revolution.

But spokesmen for Nicaragua’s unarmed opposition said Wednesday night’s congressional action undermined any government excuse to keep blocking constitutional proposals that seek to loosen the Sandinistas’ grip on political power.

Many Nicaraguans greeted the news of the vote with expressions of joy and hope for salvation from six years of war that has claimed more than 25,000 lives and crippled the economy. Others said they feared that an easing of military pressure will help the Sandinistas consolidate one-party rule.

At a press conference, Ortega voiced neither relief over the aid vote nor a readiness to make new concessions to his critics. He insisted his government has fully complied with a Central American peace accord that calls for observance of democratic freedoms and political pluralism.

‘Chance for Peace’

“The vote in Congress can influence peace efforts,” Ortega said, “but it does not make the war go away.

“If this (vote) makes Reagan conclude that the time has come for a change of his policy, then there will be a chance for peace,” he added. “But it will be a miracle if the President of the United States becomes a man of peace.”

Ortega repeated his offer for direct talks between Managua and Washington to guarantee Nicaragua’s security. War will go on, he said, until the Administration accepts such talks, stops aiding the Nicaraguan rebels and instructs them to accept a negotiated cease-fire. He accused El Salvador and Honduras of violating the peace accord by continuing to let the rebel fighters use their territory.

“This is a very crucial moment, very tense,” the Sandinista leader said. Nicaraguans, he warned, “must stay massively and permanently involved in the defense of the revolution . . . to a1667787109forces.”

Continued Conscription

As long as Washington supports “counterrevolutionary groups and military options, a process of peace and democracy cannot go forward,” he declared.

Ortega’s remarks mean young Nicaraguans will continue to be drafted to maintain the Sandinista army at about 85,000 men. On Thursday, the government radio urged 17-year-olds to report to army induction centers.

As the president spoke, leaders of 14 opposition parties marched to the National Assembly with a list of demands for ridding the constitution of its “anti-democratic content.” First on the list is a reduction in the army’s size and in the ruling party’s control over it.

The broad coalition, ranging from Communists to conservatives, also wants to limit Sandinista domination of the electoral process, the judiciary and trade unions; abolish Sandinista neighborhood vigilante committees and wage controls; limit executive power, and bar any president from reelection.

Resumed Dialogue Asked

Most of the demands were rejected by the government last year before the collapse of a “national dialogue” mandated by the regional peace accord. The opposition asked Thursday that the dialogue be resumed with an impartial mediator.

“The moment of truth has arrived,” said Virgilio Godoy, a member of the assembly’s anti-Sandinista minority. “The Reagan Administration has been saying that without military pressure, a democratic opening in Nicaragua is impossible.

“The Sandinistas have been saying there can be no democracy while the United States finances the war,” Godoy went on. “Well, the financing has stopped, and the Sandinistas have run out of legitimate excuses. Now they have to show their real face.”

President Oscar Arias Sanchez of Costa Rica, architect of the Central American peace accord signed last August, expressed a similar view without mentioning Nicaragua by name.

‘We Bury War’

Calling the congressional action a vote of confidence in the five-nation agreement, Arias told reporters in San Jose: “From now on, we bury war. There will be no excuses, no pretexts not to comply fully with the spirit and letter of the accord.”

While Ortega insisted his government has already complied with the accord, opposition leaders noted that the government has not granted amnesty to most political prisoners or allowed the opposition to operate a television station.

In Washington, two of the Contras’ leaders said their funds would dry up by the end of March without aid to replace money denied by Wednesday’s House vote, Reuters news service reported.

Adolfo Calero and Alfredo Cesar said after conferring with Secretary of State George P. Shultz that they will seek assistance from countries other than the United States and vowed that their forces will intensify their struggle against the Sandinista government.

Six American conservative groups offered to market aid bonds for the Contras to compensate for the aid cutoff and said they would try to raise $2 million a month.

‘Don’t’ Lose Hope’

“To our brothers in Nicaragua, we say . . . don’t lose hope,” said Lynn Bouche of the Council for Inter-American Security. “We will do everything legally possible to help you continue your struggle.”