Is Nicaragua a democracy?

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JEREMY Corbyn's report from Nicaragua (SO 144) brought out clearly the tremendous advantages most Nicaraguans have gained from the anti-Somoza revolution.

It is not for the US former allies and supporters of the vampire-like Somoza family dictatorship to lecture either the people of Nicaragua, or even the Sandinistas, about democracy.

socialists, however, should concern themselves with democracy - and if we do, we need to differentiate between democracy and paternalism, even benevo lent paternalism.

Uncritically

Jeremy rather uncritically described the 'consultation' and 'mass involvement' promoted by the FSLN as if it is democracy. For sure it is better than what the people got under the Somozas. But it is not democracy.

The FSLN forms a ruling political elite which, having smashed the Somoza state machine, is now master in Nicaragua. It is not in the final analysis under any sort of democratic control. The elite itself decides what it will take and what it will leave from the suggestions, criticisms; and aspirations of those whom it consults.

Caste

The core of the FSLN is of course made up of selfless people who risked their lives in years of struggle against Somoza: Nevertheless a set-up like that in Nicaragua now contains the possibility, and in certain situations the inevitability, of the development of the elite into a permanent ruling caste which awards itself material privileges on top of its present political privileges and becomes, more or less completely, a self-serving Stalinist bureaucracy, or crystallises as a state capitalist class.

Right now the FSLN is far from having overthrown capitalism. For example, half the sugar production is controlled by one man.

But the FSLN elite has pretty full control. So far it has decided to let capitalism exist. It may let it continue indefinitely. It may reach an accommodation with the USA. But probably it could decide to eliminate capitalism in Nicaragua.

Should this regime go 'the Cuban way' and become dependent on Cuba and the USSR -and survive US hostility - then the absence of democratic control would produce a Stalinist state like that of Cuba.

There is no reason to doubt Castro's bravery against the dictator Batista, or his sincerity and and benevolence towards the Cuban people, to whom Castro's revolution has brought great benefits - but nevertheless Cuba, under the control of the 26 July Movement elite around Castro, became a totalitarían Stalinist state, receiving about $8 million a day from the USSR.

Evolutions

Nicaragua today needs to overthrow capitalism, and to replace it with a system of socialism under the democratic control of the masses, led by the working class. That is not what it has now, or what any of the various possible evolutions of the elitist FSLN regime is likely to give it.

JACK CLEARY, Islington