252. Telegram 2529 From the Embassy in Nicaragua to the Department of State1
2529. Subject: Assessment: An Era of Better Political Feelings.
Summary: Political tempers which peaked in the first month after the December 27 FSLN attack at Los Robles have receded in the past several weeks. This has been manifested in less harassment of Pedro Joaquin Chamorro; greater freedom of debate in Congress and within the Liberal Party; and signs of rapprochement between the government and the Church and private sector. Tensions have been reduced by the GON’s key handling of the construction workers strike in February, steps toward depersonalization and decentralization of the government, and the downgrading of some of the regime’s more aggressive spokesmen. The process has perhaps been abetted by the media censorship imposed since December and definitely by the absence of a serious recurrence of FSLN activity in urban areas. It may have been slowed down, however, by the usual accusations concerning nepotism and misfeasance within the regime. Whether the softer mood will continue depends mostly on the government since the options available to [Page 675] the nonviolent opposition are rather circumscribed. However, the neutralist forces of the Church and private sector may indirectly exert influence in determining how long the current mood will last, and certainly the FSLN, if it has the capability, could interrupt it abruptly. End summary.
[Omitted here is the body of the telegram.]
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Summary: The Embassy reported that the Nicaraguan political climate had improved somewhat since the tense period following the December 1974 FSLN hostage-taking incident.
Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D750226–0551. Confidential. Repeated to USIA, Guatemala City, Panama City, San José, San Salvador, and Tegucigalpa. All brackets are in the original except those indicating text omitted by the editors.
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