COSTA RICA NEWS – A group of Costa Rican legislators of the Frente Amplio (FA) will travel to Nicaragua to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution.
The head of the FA legislative bench, Gerarco Vargas, explained that the legislators were invited by the Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional (FSLN) – Sandinista National Liberation Front – to participate in the ceremonies that will be held in Managua.
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The Sandinista party is picking up the tab for travel and accommodations for the Frente Amplio legislators.
[/su_pullquote]The FSLN will cover the travel costs, including accommodations for four days, for Ligia Fallas, José Ramírez, Ronal Vargas and Jorge Arguedas, as well as Frente Amplio party general secretary, Rodolfo Ulloa.
Vargas said the group will leave Thursday and return on Sunday.
The Government of Nicaragua celebrates the anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution on Saturday July 19, the day that they overthrew dictator Anastasio Somoza Debayle in Managua in 1979.
Two days earlier, in that year, Somoza, who ruled from 1967 to 1972 and from 1974 to 1979, had left the Nicaraguan presidency and the country.
FA Legislator Ligia Fallas said she sees no problem going to celebrate “historic achievement” in Nicaragua, despite the dispute between the two countries since 2010 by the alleged invasion Calero Island by Nicaragua.
For its part, the legislator Jorge Arguedas said he is particularly interested in celebrating the overthrow of Somoza, as he himself, during his younger years, worked for the Sandinista Revolution.
“We must accept this invitation; we are more than brothers and neighbours. I worked hard to overthrow Somoza in my younger days; I carry this revolution in my soul, “Arguedas said.
The government online edition of El 19 Digital highlights the celebration plans, titled the 35/19 aniversario de la Revolución Popular Sandinista, headed by “compañera” Rosario Murillo, coordinator of the Communication and Citizenship Council and wife of president Ortega.
The FLSN is today a social democratic political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas [sandiˈnistas] in both English and Spanish. The party is named after Augusto César Sandino who led the Nicaraguan resistance against the United States occupation of Nicaragua in the 1930s.
The FSLN originated in the milieu of various oppositional organizations, youth and student groups in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The University of Léon, and the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (UNAN) in Managua were two of the principal centers of activity. Inspired by the Revolution and the FLN in Algeria, the FSLN itself was founded in 1961 by Carlos Fonseca, Silvio Mayorga (es), Tomás Borge and others as The National Liberation Front (FLN). Only Tomás Borge lived long enough to see the Sandinista victory in 1979.
The term “Sandinista”, was added two years later, establishing continuity with Sandino’s movement, and using his legacy in order to develop the newer movement’s ideology and strategy. By the early 1970s, the FSLN was launching limited military initiatives.
Sources: La Nacion (Costa Rica); El 19 Digital (Nicaragua); Wikipedia
