Nicaragua: Gov’t, Opposition Reach 6-Point Agreement

Nicaragua’s government and sections of the opposition Civic Alliance have reached six-point agreements after several rounds of talks Friday.

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Both sides claimed significant victories according to officials, who attended the meeting.

Foreign Minister Denis Moncada, the government's chief negotiator, secured a commitment from the opposition’s to lift blockages, which had made several of the country's major roads impassable. He was also able to obtain a commitment from the opposition to end a series of violent actions, which they and the mediators -the Episcopal Conference- acknowledged had in the most part been fueled by anti-government protesters.

“The roundtable for dialogue issues a call for the end of all types of violence and threats, whatever their source,” an official statement published by the mediation commission affirmed. During the weeks of violence, at least 150 people were killed, among them members of the opposition, government supporters, and state security forces.

Point six of the agreement establishes a “plan… for the removal of roadblocks by the verification and security commission that will promote the maintenance of an environment of peace and security.”

The opposition got the government to agree to “urge the presence of the Inter American Commission on Human Rights,” which is tasked with investigating all deaths and acts of violence since the beginning of Nicaragua’s political crisis in mid-April.

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The government also agreed to send invitations for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, officials from the European Union and Organization of American States to establish an immediate presence. The also agreed to the creation of the verification and security commission formed by the representatives of the national dialogue committee with members of the church and members of the international community as observers. The commission has the task of verifying that there is an environment of peace and security for all Nicaraguans.   

The parties resumed dialogue over three weeks after they came to a halt on May 23, when the opposition demanded Nicaraguan president to step down before his term is over in 2021. Moncada called the demand a coup, and officials have refused to include it in the current negotiations.

The dialogue will continue Saturday to discuss what the church has called the “process of democratization,” namely its proposal for early elections and implement political reforms.

The Nicaraguan political crisis began in mid-April when protesters took to the streets in opposition to social security reforms that sought to overcome the system’s financial crisis by increasing contribution by both employees (0.75 percent) and employers (3.5 percent) to avoid raising the retirement age.

President Ortega withdrew the reform to avoid a spiral of violence, but the opposition’s demands had shifted from social security to the government’s removal.