The World - News from July 8, 1988

The Nicaraguan Resistance has slashed its non-military budget 42%, laying off 130 of its 320 employees worldwide and closing some offices in Europe and Latin America, Contra leaders announced in Miami. The action will save the U.S.-backed rebels about $250,000 a month, said Contra director Alfredo Cesar, who attributed the moves to a cutoff in U.S. aid by Congress. The cuts “have nothing to do with operations in the field,” he emphasized at a news conference. Cesar and fellow Contra director Aristides Sanchez denied a New York Times report that each Contra leader receives $75,000 a year in U.S. funds and a monthly expense account.