CONTRADICTIONS
NEXT week the American Congress must decide whether to grant President Reagan the $100 million he wants for the Nicara- guan Contras. This is a very decision important , not least for the way the United States will be viewed in Europe. Pre§iden, t Reagan has argued that Nicaragua is a c°uotrY held captive by a cruel clique with deeph, r!. .7 committed communists at war with and man'. The Soviet- and Cuban- packed Sandinistas have crushed democra- ery at home, and are trying to export evolution to their neighbours. Only sup- Port for the Contras' armed struggle can ,hring Nicaragua back to the ways of rsernocracy and peace. So this vote, the President believes, will not only help to Protect the United States' vital national 621. ntY interests. It is also part of the P: __Lilted States' worldwide campaign to omote democracy. Yesterday the Philip- P,,Ines, today Nicaragua. Now, we have no _ ions lsaabout the Sandinistas. They have aPPointed many of the original hopes of their P°Pular revolution, alienated most of nlOre moderate allies (including the Cory Aquino of Nicaragua — Mrs Violeta Chamorro), and are building a regime which increasingly resembles Castro's Cuba. But to mention the Philippines is to point up the crucial differences. Cory Aquino led a 'third force' which had a convincing democratic record and massive popular support. The Contras have a far from convincing democratic record and the evidence for their enjoying widespread, let alone majority support inside Nicaragua, is very questionable. When Mr Shultz wel- comed the change of government in Manila what he singled out for special praise was Mrs Aquino's 'commitment to non- violence'. Violence is the Contras' trade. They have been fighting a dirty little war, inflicting high civilian casualties. The effect of supporting Mrs Aquino was to weaken a brutal and corrupt dictatorship. But what, so far, has been the effect of promoting the Contras? Arguably, the main effect has been to accelerate the militarisation of Nicaragua, and the accompanying im- poverishment and repression. The United States' promotion of the C,ontt as has cer- tainly given the Sandinistas a perfect pre- text for militarisation and repression. 'The question is sometimes asked,' Mr Shultz remarked in his evidence to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 'whether any Latin American country supports our Nicaraguan policy. But isn't a better ques- tion whether any Latin American country (other than Cuba) supports Nicaragua's policies?' Well, no, Mister Secretary, it isn't. The point at issue is not whether but how to change the Sandinistas' direction. Virtually all the governments of Central and Latin America think US promotion of the Contras is the wrong way to go about the right cause. They are right.
Previous page
