Editorials
Monday, October 28, 1996
Nicaragua’s president
deserves U.S. support
A decade of Sandinista rule in Nicaragua ended in February 1990 with the upset election victory of Violeta Chamorro over incumbent President Daniel Ortega. Chamorro's triumph also terminated the civil war between the pro-Communist Sandinistas and the U.S.-backed Contra rebels and brought peace to the shattered country. Now Nicaragua has held another presidential election, and again Ortega has been defeated, this time by Arnoldo Aleman, former mayor of Managua, a businessman and fierce opponent of the Sandinistas.
Ortega refused to concede, saying he would wait for election officials to recheck the vote count. But international observers, including former President Jimmy Carter, discount allegations of fraud. With a preliminary vote count nearly complete, Aleman was leading Ortega, 49 to 38 percent. A 45 percent plurality was required to avoid a runoff.
Aleman had alleged ties to the Anastasio Somoza dictatorship overthrown by the Sandinistas in 1979, and the Sandinistas claim his victory means a return of the Somoza regime. Aleman denies he belonged to pro-Somoza youth groups but has admitted his father and brother had ties to the Somoza government.
Despite Ortega's charges of irregularities, foreign and domestic leaders, including President Chamorro and the U.S. ambassador, have congratulated Aleman as the next president. There is little doubt that he has won and that the election was fair. This is a historic achievement. For the first time in Nicaragua, one freely elected government has been succeeded by another. Aleman's election should help strengthen business confidence in the future of the economy, which was wrecked by Sandinista mismanagement and the civil war with the Contras.
Although Washington's attention has long since turned to other problems, Nicaragua should not be forgotten. The new president should be given assistance in restoring prosperity and maintaining peace and order - provided that he does not revert to the corrupt and repressive ways of the Somoza dynasty.
Public humiliation
AT the height of this political season, sign-holding has taken on a new meaning on Maui - thanks to Circuit Court Judge Boyd Mossman. His unorthodox method of sentencing Valley Island defendants to public displays of remorse instead of prison time is an alternative that bears watching by Mossman's judicial brethren.
Swiss bank secrets
SWITZERLAND has enjoyed a reputation as a neutral sanctuary during World War II, but it now develops that its famous banks have much explaining to do regarding their policies during and after the Nazi era. Jews and non-Jews persecuted by Hitler deposited vast sums in the Swiss banks to protect their savings from the Nazis. After the war, survivors of the Holocaust charge, the banks refused to relinquish to them the money deposited in secret numbered accounts.
Even at this late date, it is important that the truth be uncovered and property restored to its rightful owners to the extent that the ravages of time permit.
Published by Liberty Newspapers Limited Partnership
Rupert E. Phillips, CEO
John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher
David Shapiro, Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor