Nicaragua is in the midst of a civil war. Sandinista policies since 1979 have polarized and alienated numerous segments of Nicaraguan society. including the Catholic Church. the middle class. and the various Indian minority groups of the Mosqultia region. To give you a brief illustration of the level of disenchantment within Nicaragua today. we need look at the number of Nicaraguan refugees in neighboring countries: In Panama. 20.000 Nicaraguans. in Costa Rica. at least 30.000 Nicaraguans. and in Honduras. 25.000 Nicaraguans. As you can imagine. these 75.000 Nlcaraguans place a tremendous burden on these neighboring countries. Nevertheless. Nicaraguas Government denies that a refugee problem even exists or that its policies may have caused this exodus of its citizens. We must also remember as well that much of the Nicaraguan opposition movement is not composed of former adherents of Anastasio Somozas dictatorship. Yet. this is how the opposition to the Sandinistas is often portrayed in our press.
Keywords matched
refugee refugees