Tony Burke - Unite the Union, Morning Star, June 16th 2021
The media, including the Guardian and usual suspects such as the Daily Mail, along with The Washington Post and New York Times in the United States, are again awash with accusatory articles about Nicaragua.
Despite a positive and welcome approach from US President Joe Biden on workers’ rights, collective bargaining, union organising and on a workers’ agenda on trade agreements. US Foreign policy has not changed one iota in relation to countries in Latin America.
Nicaragua’s right-wing opposition claims that the Government is disqualifying political opponents in order to give President Daniel Ortega and The Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) an easy win in this year’s elections and that the elections will not be free and fair.
At the time when the opposition is riven by internal squabbling and can barely muster 20% of popular support –as opposed to an approval rating of about 60% for the FSLN and Daniel Ortega- this could not be further from the truth.
The fact is that the US is now increasingly anxious that its regime change agenda will fail and is turning up the heat in order to sabotage the elections.
It is continuing to pour millions of dollars into Nicaragua’s right-wing opposition and has just imposed even more sanctions on the government and Sandinista officials.
There are fears that the US may even be planning yet another coup, and has now stated that is prepared to review “trade-related activities” wit Nicaragua, including Nicaragua’s participation in the Central America free-trade agreement “if the country’s coming elections are not free and fair.”
As far as the US is concerned, the elections will only be considered free and fair if the US-backed opposition wins.
I would urge readers to visit the Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign Action Group website which links Nicaraguan and British unions and read the excellent articles, which tell the real story of what is happening in Nicaragua, including articles from the Alliance for Global Justice; a briefing produced by NSCAG; Revista de Frente, Alborada, Orinoco Tribune and The Grayzone.