U.S. Aid for the Contras

Susan Kaufman Purcell closes her commentary advocating a resumption of military aid to the Nicaraguan Contras (“Sandinistas Flatten Opposition; Wise Reply Is Contra Aid,” Op-Ed Page, July 19) with the words “military aid (to the Contras) . . . will enable the long-suffering Nicaraguan people to remove unwanted rulers with ballots instead of bullets.” Somehow, I find her concern for the people of Nicaragua disingenuous, at best.

First, why is it the Sandinistas are referred to as “rulers,” instead of “leaders?” Does Purcell call Ronald Reagan our ruler, or our leader? The latter--why?--because he was elected. Well, so were the leaders of Nicaragua.

Instead of offering evidence of Nicaraguan discontent with the Sandinista government, she takes it as a given: “growing resistance to their rule,” “rebels doing better than ever,” “the opposition’s growing legitimacy and support,” are various restatements of her bias, but where is the corroborative evidence? She mentions the closing of the “opposition” newspaper La Prensa, but by not mentioning the reasons for the closing, she reveals herself to be a propagandist. La Prensa is a newspaper that has openly admitted receiving a substantial amount of its operating funds from the United States government. Furthermore, the editors of La Prensa have used their paper to repeatedly call for the overthrow of the duly-constituted Nicaraguan government. It seems to me that under those circumstances the Sandinistas were right to close it. The Sandinistas should be commended for allowing the treasonous La Prensa to operate as long as they have.

Her assertion that the Sandinistas aren’t popular leads me to believe she’s never been there; or if she has, she never left her hotel room. A government that distributes weapons to its citizenry--as Nicaragua has done--is not a government that fears its people. Only a government that enjoys widespread support could take such a step.

Similarly, Purcell doesn’t hesitate to tell the readers that the Soviets are sending weapons to Nicaragua, but why doesn’t she go on to mention that the Nicaraguans have nowhere else to turn? Nowhere does she mention that the U.S. government has enjoined its allies from sending military assistance to the Sandinistas. Readers might like to know a fact like that. Doesn’t a country have the right to defend itself? Purcell might also like to know that there wasn’t a single Soviet weapon in Nicaragua until the United States organized the Contra army and began its attacks.

DAVID SCHREIBER

Los Angeles