Voters in 2 Cities Reflect Split on Sandinista Rule

Twelve years ago, this town of artisans and craftsmen rose up in arms against dictator Anastasio Somoza, earning its name as the “cradle” of the Sandinista revolution.

In a dusty settlement 30 miles away, factory workers and market vendors built a clandestine network of safehouses for the leftist Sandinista guerrillas, who would later name the settlement Ciudad Sandino--after their hero, Cesar Augusto Sandino.

These communities, once united in common cause, Sunday reflected the deep divisions in Nicaraguan society as citizens streamed to the polls to vote in what amounted to a referendum on a decade of Sandinista rule. The towns illustrated how, in one case, the Sandinistas managed to hold onto their support through eight years of war against the U.S.-backed Contras and how, in another, they lost.

In the streets of Masaya, about 20 miles southeast of the capital of Managua, cobblers, carpenters and merchants overwhelmingly had turned against the revolutionary government. Most said they were voting for its challenger, the National Opposition Union (UNO), in the local and national races.

Truck drivers and homemakers recited a litany of resentments that added up to 10 years of Sandinista mistakes: food rationing, price controls, inflation, neighborhood committees, the expulsion of priests and, most important, the military draft.

Most of the complaints have long since been corrected. But for many, the changes came too late.

“They drafted my son,” said Yelba Martinez, 49. “He died in 1984. Our sons died in a war that was not ours.”

In Ciudad Sandino, however, factory workers, seamstresses and teachers considered the war against the rebels very much their own. That conflict is the source of the nation’s ills, they said.

“I love my children as much as any mother,” said Estela Paiz, 46, who has four sons in the army. “But if we don’t defend our country, who will? It is worse to run away.”

Most of the men and women interviewed in Ciudad Sandino, on the western outskirts of Managua, were adamant in their support for the Sandinista National Liberation Front. The Sandinistas have given them schools, parks, health centers and titles to their homes.

“The government has taken care of the poor,” said Maria Jose Berroteran.

The 1978 uprising in the Monimbo neighborhood of Masaya began with a Mass for Pedro Joaquin Chamorro, the slain newspaper publisher. Somoza’s National Guard attacked mourners leaving the church, and townsfolk responded with guns.

The Sandinista guerrillas moved to the front of the fighting, which left many dead. Among the victims was Camilo Ortega, the brother of Sandinista President Daniel Ortega.

Sebastian Putoy was just a boy then, but he and his family helped hide the Sandinista guerrillas. After Somoza fell, he supported the ruling junta, which included Ortega and Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, wife of the martyred publisher.

But as the Sandinistas consolidated power, Putoy grew disillusioned--as did Chamorro, who resigned from the junta. The last straw for Putoy came when the Sandinistas approved a law imposing a military draft.

Putoy joined the small opposition Social Christian Party. He was briefly jailed in 1984 for alleged support of the Contras.

When his party joined UNO last year, the 24-year-old Putoy became their candidate for mayor of Masaya, the municipality that governs Monimbo. Once again, he was on the same side as Chamorro, UNO’s presidential candidate.

“All governments in power suffer wear and tear, but in addition to the normal problems, the Sandinista Front also failed to fulfill its original plan . . . for the democratization of Nicaragua,” Putoy said.

The Ciudad Sandino area was one of Somoza’s urban renewal projects. In 1969, he moved hundreds of families out of the wetlands around Lake Managua and offered to sell them flat, dry plots to the west--which he and his cronies allegedly owned.

The project was named the Permanent National Emergency Operation, or “Open,” as the English-speaking dictator called it. After a 1972 earthquake ravaged Managua, hundreds more families came to buy the land for their wooden shacks.

Roberto Somoza--no relation to the dictator--moved to the settlement in 1970 and soon joined a Christian youth group run by Maryknoll nuns and Jesuit priests. By 1973, the Christian Youth Movement was organizing homeowners to demand plumbing, drinking water, a cemetery and public transportation.

The neighbors also organized protests against the dictator’s consortium, which would repossess the lands when families fell behind on their payments.

By 1976, Sandinista guerrillas had made inroads into the community group. They recruited Roberto Somoza to organize a clandestine network of collaborators and safehouses, and they set up a military training school in the community. Many neighborhood youths fought with the Sandinistas in the insurrection.

After the triumph, Roberto Somoza went to work for the Sandinista Front. He taught reading in the literacy campaign and eventually became the party’s top official in Ciudad Sandino.

At 32, Somoza was named the Sandinistas’ candidate for the city council in Ciudad Sandino. The community of 70,000 residents technically is part of Managua, but in such a large community, a councilman would effectively be the mayor.

“Ciudad Sandino is Sandinista because of its history--because the Front has worried about the barrio and because the barrio is the Sandinista Front,” Somoza said. “The roots of the Sandinista Front are in these people.”

Putoy of UNO and the Sandinistas’ Roberto Somoza each were expected to win their respective races in an election that both said they hoped would bring an end to the Contra war.

Their supporters vowed to abide by the election results. But both sides said they feared violence from the other side if they lost.

“We don’t want violence,” said Maria Eugenia Mercado, a Sandinista in Masaya. “To be opponents does not mean to be enemies.”

“All we want is peace in Nicaragua,” said Gloria Fletes, 54, a Sandinista in Ciudad Sandino. Five of her sons have served in the army.

A Nation’s Turmoil Events leading to Sunday’s presidential elections The Sandinista National Liberation Front took power on July 19,1979, after a popular uprising drove out President Anastasio Somoza and ended 43 years of pro-U.S. Somoza family rule. The United States initially supported the revolution. But differences intensified, with President Reagan accusing Nicaragua of arming leftist Salvadoran rebels. On April 1, 1981, Reagan cut off U.S. economic aid. He later began covert aid to the anti-government Contras and imposed a trade embargo.

1988 Feb. 3: U.S. military aid to the Contras cut off; Sandinistas grapple with the worst economic crisis since revolution. Mar.23: Contras and Sandinistas sign an accord in the Nicaraguan border outpost of Sapoa, agreeing to a 60-day truce and futher talks. July 1: Nicaragua unilaterally renews the truce for 30 days, setting a pattern that holds until Nov.1, 1989, despite scattered clashes. Contra leaders say they consider the truce indefinite in any case. Sept.: Talks to turn the Sapoa agreement into a lasting peace collapse. With U.S. non-lethal aid continuing, 12,000 Contra troops move out of Nicaragua into Honduran camps. 1989 Feb.14: Ortega and the other Central American presidents agree at a summit in El Salvador to devise a plan for disbanding the rebels holed up in Honduran base camps. Contras not present at summit. In exchange, Nicaragua promises to advance election date from November to Feburary 1990. April 18: Bush signs a $49-million non-lethal aid package for Contras that runs through February, 1990. Declines to renew military aid. Aug. 7: Agreement to disband and relocate the Contras by Dec.8 is signed at a summit in Tela, Honduras. Contras not present. U.S. officials note disbandment is voluntary and say Contras should be kept in place as a guarantee of fair elections. Contra leaders say their men will ignore both the Tela accords and U.S. advice, moving their troops b ack into Nicaragua to await the elections. Oct. 22: Nicaragua accuses Contras of killing 18 Sandinista soldiers who were being taken to register to vote. Contras say they are not launching attacks, only defending themselves. Nov. 1: Ortega ends the 19-month old truce, citing continued rebel attacks.