Last month, Nicaragua’s Supreme Electoral Court (CSE) dealt a major blow to the already weakened state of democratic plurality within the country when it eliminated the legal status of two key opposition parties, the Sandinista Renovation Movement (MRS) and the Conservative Party (PC). The move, which was greeted with much criticism for its perceived arbitrariness, is a serious one as both parties were expected to be major contenders in key mayoral races across the country during the municipal elections coming in November. Indeed, the two parties collectively received 20% support in the opinion polls.
The court’s decision may come as no surprise to those familiar with Nicaraguan politics as the courts have a history of such action. The 1999 political agreement between Ortega’s wing of the Sandinista movement and the right-wing Liberal Constitutionalist Party (PLC) led by Arnoldo Aleman, known as “el Pacto,” had control of the supreme and electoral courts as one primary objective. El Pacto, though diminished, remains relevant: two magistrates, allies of each party, were just re-elected for their fourth consecutive terms as the President and Vice-President of the Supreme Court.
The electoral court’s decision represents but one more step in the downhill trend of governance under current president Daniel Ortega. Prior to Ortega Nicaragua was hardly blessed with politicians of uncommon virtue, but Ortega’s control of the Sandinista party – still the country’s largest – gives him a stronger base from which operate than previous leaders had. One innovation of the Ortega administration that many are unhappy with is the Citizens' Power Councils (CPC), neighborhood committees that dole out government subsidized loans. The only problem is that they are controlled by the Sandinista party members. While it is not unequivocal, many feel that the subsidized loans and other assistance are given primarily to those with affiliation to the ruling party. This fits into a broader trend: a party that featured genuine popular support into the mid-1980s has been seen as moving ever-further away from its idealistic roots. Ortega, as the embodiment of the Sandinista party, sees this perception reflected in his ever-dwindling popularity ratings.
Nor have the administration’s actions have gone unnoticed by former comrades. The perception of Sandinista drift was the main reason the now-banned MRS was created in the first place. Recently, a former Sandinista hero from the 1970s, Dora María Téllez, began a hunger strike to show her dismay at the electoral court’s actions. Other intellectuals who formerly supported Ortega have also spoken out. There is even a new group of people is sharing their mind via the popular website Facebook. A ‘group’ was created in support of Ms. Téllez’s hunger strike and grew quickly among Nicaraguan youth with access to a computer; 4,000 protesters eventually took to the streets, though the hunger strike ended after 12 days upon medical advice.
Foreign supporters have also noted the government’s less-than-fair and non-transparent ways and have hinted at potential aid cuts, which could be devastating for poor Nicaraguans. However, with Ortega’s government getting substantial cash and petroleum infusions from Venezuela, foreigners’ leverage is more limited than previously. In the context of such a debilitated institutional environment, it is going to take a lot more than a simple Facebook group to put Nicaragua on the road to improved governance. Nonetheless, citizen demands for improved performance are a fundamental component of the steps that will need to be taken to break up the country’s ossified political structures.
Photo Credits: Flickr users TreMichLan (right) and Presidencia de la Republica del Ecuador (left)
