Nicaragua Update 5 May 9th, 2018

It has taken me longer than I had hoped to get this update out. There are lots of things happening and it is difficult to keep track of when and why things are happening. Many incidents are happening simultaneously. I hope this makes sense because the events of most days don’t make much sense to me.

photos courtesy of freinds and 100% Noticias FB

Conditions are not improving in Nicaragua. There are daily protests in Managua. The smaller communities are following suit.

More people have died. Unofficial totals are close to 80. The Sandinista government’s official tally is 10. A small discrepancy. Family, friends and neighbors have erected crosses and placed flowers in memory of each of the fallen in the Jean Paul Genie rotunda located on the Carretera a Masaya. In less than 24 hours the crosses were removed by the Sandinista city workers.

The crosses were replaced and trees planted by each cross. Workers came by again, destroying the crosses, pulling up the trees and spraying tar over the entire rotunda to prevent further planting. The municipality of Managua has now commenced road work on this stretch of highway.

Tuesday was the International Day of the Worker. A day off for most people here. Demonstrations were put on hold as people were hopeful that the religious leaders had been successful in setting up talks. Of course, they have cancelled yet again.

Tuesday also saw government workers ie police, fire, ambulance, and doctors take the day in protest. No essential services for the country.

The largest market in Nicaragua, the Oriental, has been hit with Molotov Cocktail bombs three times this week. The last attack being on the day the fire department was protesting. People banded together to try and save what they could. The market has been destroyed. What the fire didn’t get, the looters and vandals did.

Tuesday also saw the unrest hit our small community. Around noon we could smell smoke. A half hour later flames were licking at our walls and my neighbours house was in danger of burning. This when we found out that the fire and police departments were not working.

We have a 4 inch irrigation pump that we put in our saltwater well. This was effective in stopping the fire from coming any closer. If the wind hadn’t changed the out come would have been very different. The well is dry now, so we are hoping for rains to replenish the water table.

Last Thursday, riot/anti-terrorist police were observed in various locations wearing face masks, carrying high-powered rifles with silencers and scopes walking the streets. Later that night 6 students were shot on the university grounds. Coincidence? The students are all in grave condition in a private hospital in Managua.

Friday saw the country lose phone services. 12 hours only. I think it is a taste of what is to come. The government is flexing its muscles.

Monday saw the country lose its internet, region by region for 24 hours. Communications here in the future could be in jeopardy. There is a group of people here looking for alternative ways to keep communication links to the outside.

Monday also saw the Nicaraguan government refuse the UN Human Rights Organization to come into the country to investigate the deaths of the protesters. The Sandinista congress has set up a commission of 5 of its own members. They have three months to report back to Ortega. The people fear a large cover-up.

On Monday 5 buses were hijacked and the passengers kidnapped. The passengers were later released and the buses were torched. Apparently, the government paid people to lie about being on wrong buses and being kidnapped. The buses were found to be old stripped down derelict buses taken out of service. There were no passengers. Later buses belong to the university were stolen and set on fire in a different rotunda.

Last night another rotunda was vandalized. Statues were smashed and splashed with paint.

There are skirmishes happening all over the country, even in small towns. So far, deaths have only been reported in Masaya, Managua, Bluefields and Chinandega. There maybe more but they are not making it to the news.

Today there will be major protests across the country. They are expecting a nation wide strike effectively shutting down the country to happen later today. No one knows for sure if this will in fact happen or if it is just more rhetoric.

United We Stand

What have we been doing to protect ourselves?

While all these things have been happening around us, my family and I have not been sitting idly by. We know that there will be no aid forthcoming from any embassy. All embassies are closed with instructions that if you were silly enough to stay, then there is a toll free number that you may call between the hours of 8:00 am and 12:00 pm. I can only imagine that you will be told to leave a number and they will get back to you (at their convenience).

I am a responsible, spiritual being, the steward of the land that I am living on, therefore I take my responsibility seriously. I will provide for the safety of my family and that of my neighbours.

The neighbours here are not generally known to work together or support one another. Even the various churches here (7 in direct competition for members) can not see eye to eye long enough to co-operate when the chips are down.

I have been working on the co-operation factor for a few years now and perhaps we are making some progress. At least some folks have started planting fruit trees that we grow from seeds here on the homestead. A few are growing veggies in their gardens. We have also planted fruit trees in the children’s park. It’s a start.

We held talks with a few of the neighbours on Tuesday after the fire. For security and safety reasons three of the families will be joining us here in our compound. (we are walled and secure). My son and his family from Managua will be joining us shortly. Safety in numbers.

The men have been busy making sure everything is secure and adding security where they felt it was needed. The women have been planning on the logistics of feeding everyone.

Everyone, men, women and children are planting the extra veggie gardens we feel will be needed in the future.

We held further talks with our friends down the road who also have a compound. There will be a further three families joining them and the two compounds will pool resources when needed.

Since these talks have gone so well, we have reached out to two other friends in Sutiava and Leon. They too will be reaching out to family and neighbours for security in numbers.

The folks in these groups all have various skills that should help out if the need arise. We have managed to stock pile a bit of food and lots of water. This is an amazing feat for here since most people don’t plan beyond tomorrow. Some are fishermen and they are stocking the freezer with fresh fish.

We have pooled the chicken flocks, so we are good for eggs. We are looking for a source of milk for the children. We have a neighbour that has milking cows but he is reluctant to join us. We are trying to negotiate with him to buy one of the cows but so far no luck.

There are plans in place that if we need to evacuate we can, but I am torn at the prospect. We have worked long and hard to make our dream a reality. I am the steward of this homestead and I am not about to give it up. If we leave, we lose everything.

War, or the possibility of one, changes everything. Ideals and dreams are thrown out the window. Everything that once was true, valid and crystal clear, no longer are. Trust becomes an issue. Fear and uncertainty become your constant companions. Life as you knew it is forever changed.

You can either seize up and stop functioning, or you can try your best to live each day to the fullest as normally as possible and pray to the Creator that cooler heads will prevail.

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