Case 4: Political Life in Central America

 

 

Contents

The texts below and images below highlight the materials exhibited in Case 4 shown above.

 

 

 

The Latin American Library houses an important collection of 58 pieces of papers and personal correspondence from Central American Independence hero and statesman General José Francisco Morazán Quezada (1792- 1842). Morazán served two terms as President of the United Republic of Central America (1830-1838) and struggled unsuccessfully for a united Central American nation. Most of the letters in the collection concern Morazán’s business activities and associates but a few provide glimpses of his family and friends. Above is an especially poignant letter penned by Morazán to his stepson, Esteban, after being ousted from the presidency, while in exile in Colombia. The ex-President gives his interpretation of the events leading to his defeat and self-imposed exile. What shines through is his commitment to a united Central America and his bitter disappointment that all his efforts to achieve it were ultimately thwarted.

 

 

 

The Central American states of Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Nicaragua, represented by the five mountains in the seal on this printed version of the 1824 Constitution, shown above, were formerly part of the viceroyalty of New Spain. In 1821, the states won their independence from Spain only to become incorporated into Iturbide’s brief Mexican empire. Delegates from the states assembled in Guatemala City in 1823 to declare again their autonomy, this time from Mexico. They formed the federal republic of Central America with Guatemala City as its capital and a set of laws laid down by this first constitution of 1824. The document guaranteed, among other things, individual liberties, the abolition of slavery, Roman Catholicism as the state religion, and a president for each state.

 

 

Chamorro Barrios Family Papers (1967-1997)

 

The holdings of The Latin American Library are varied and rich regarding the unique histories of political life, governments, and elections in each of the countries of Central America. A set of materials featured in Case 4 come from the Chamorro Barrios Family Papers (1967-1997), a substantial documentary collection relating to one of Latin America’s most influential families at the forefront of Nicaragua’s political and national life since the 18^th century.

 

Pedro Joaquín Chamorro Cardenal (1924-1978) was a journalist who took on the leadership of the family newspaper. He intensified the paper’s editorial role as an organ of resistance to the regimes of Luis and Anastasio Somoza Debayle and was imprisoned and forced into exile for denouncing the dictatorship’s repression and corruption. His assassination in 1978 produced international shockwaves and reinforced a national rebellion that ousted the dynastic Somoza regime, under the rule of the Somoza political dynasty: first under the dictatorship of Anastasio Somoza Garcia established in 1936, and then under the succeeding autocracies led by his sons Luis Somoza Debayle and Anastasio “Tachito” Somoza Debayle.

 

 

Shown above is a popular image of Presidents Richard M. Nixon and Anastasio Somoza Debayle seated alongside of Brigadier General Alexander M. Haig, Jr. prior to a State Dinner at the White House, 2 June, 1971. Photograph taken by Jack E. Kightlinger.

 

Anastasio “Tachito” Somoza Debayle came to power in 1967 but was widely disliked by the Nicaraguan people for his repressive rule and widespread corruption. Journalist Pedro Joaquín Chamorro Cardenal (1924-1978) took on the leadership of La Prensa, the family-owned newspaper, intensifying its editorial role as an organ of resistance to the Somozas. He was imprisoned and forced into exile for denouncing the dictatorship’s repression and corruption. He also founded Unión Demócrata de Liberación (UDEL) in 1974 to represent the business sector in opposition to the Somoza regime. The animosity between the two men is plain to see in this copy (above) of the last known letter sent by Chamorro Cardenal to Somoza in 1975, the ending of which serves as a cryptic prophecy of Chamorro’s assassination in 1978.

 

 

Unión Nacional Opositora (UNO) was a coalition of 14 Nicaraguan political parties during the 1980s. It included conservative, centrist, and leftist parties, under the shared goal of ousting Daniel Ortega and the Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional (FSLN) party from power. This chart from the papers of then presidential candidate Violeta Barrios de Chamorro indicates which of the existing parties formed part of UNO.

 

 

Peace negotiations carried out between the Sandinista government of Nicaragua led by Daniel Ortega and its counter-revolutionary opponents known as the “Contras” in 1988 ended with an agreement by the Sandinistas to allow free elections in the Spring of 1990. Violeta Barrios de Chamorro (1929- ), the widow of Pedro Joaquín Chamorro Cardenal, agreed to run for the presidency against Ortega in 1989 under the banner of Unión Nacional Opositora (UNO). Although internally divided, the factions of UNO united under Doña Violeta’s platform which promised to restore peace and economic prosperity. Above, UNO campaign memorabilia and photographic prints from the historic 1989-1990 campaign.

 

In a surprise victory, Violeta Barrios de Chamorro defeated Daniel Ortega to become the first elected woman president in Latin America. During her seven years in office (1990-1996), she attempted to reconcile the political divisions of Nicaragua and to reverse many of the Sandinista government policies, introducing free-market reforms, human rights protections, and democratization.

 

On display is a color print taken at the home of President Violeta Barrios de Chamorro in 1990. From left, doña Violeta, Daniel Ortega, and former President Jimmy Carter.

Also shown is a color print of Violeta Barrios de Chamorro on the day of her inauguration as President of Nicaragua. Behind her is an iconic photograph of her husband, journalist Pedro Joaquín Chamorro Cardenal, assassinated in 1978. The photograph hung in her office throughout her presidency.

 

Belize

Under Spanish rule during the 16^th and 17^th centuries, present-day Belize was part of a long coastline stretching from the Bay of Campeche around the Yucatan Peninsula up to Nicaragua that was a favored haven for British, French, and Dutch smugglers and pirates. Throughout the 17^th century, northern European powers challenged Spain’s control of its American colonies. In the western Caribbean, England succeeded in capturing Jamaica from Spain in 1655, and used the island as a base to support British settlers and the exploitation of logwood (used to dye wool) and later, mahogany. Spain eventually relinquished its control, and the area became a British Crown Colony in 1862 called British Honduras. It was not until the 1950s that fervor for independence began to grow. In 1964, Britain loosened its grip on local affairs, and in 1973, the name British Honduras was dropped in favor of Belize. Negotiations for autonomy began and Belize gained its independence in 1981 with the ratification of its constitution (see below).

 

 

Current day Belize is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II who is represented in Belize by a Governor-General appointee of the monarch and who acts on the advice of the Prime Minister who in turn leads the Cabinet.

 

George Cadle Price (1919-2011) is considered “Father of the Nation” for his years of activism leading up to Belizean independence in 1981 and long career in politics. His service took many forms, including leadership of the People’s United Party (PUP) and serving as Belize’s first Prime Minister after independence from 1981 to 1984. He lost the post of Prime Minister to the leader of the oppositional United Democratic Party (UDP), Manuel Esquival, in 1984 but regained it in 1989 after Esquival failed to win re-election.