The indigenous communities of the municipalities of San José de Cusmapa, San Lucas, Totogalpa and Telpaneca, in the department of Madriz, and of Mozonte, in the department of Nueva Segovia, have not elected their local authorities for more than four years.
The same is happening in the only two indigenous communities of San Antonio de Paguas and Santa Barbara, in the municipality of Somoto, head of the department of Madriz, due to the influence of the ruling Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN), a party that exercises strong controls. in indigenous leaders through the municipalities.
In the indigenous municipalities of San José de Cusmapa, San Lucas, Telpaneca and Totogalpa, including the communities of San Antonio de Paguas and Santa Barbara, in Madriz, and Mozonte, in Nueva Segovia, the presidents of these Native Peopless have in some cases been in charge of boards of directors for up to 19 years, and have even been mayors for the red and black party in these localities. In addition, they tend to alternate leadership positions among the members of their family.
“Here Alfonso Báez has been president of the board of directors of the indigenous people of San José de Cusmapa for more than seven years. Before, Mr. Inés Pérez had alternated several times with the former Sandinista mayor María Elena Días Vásquez, but the indigenous candidates and elections are decided in the house of the Sandinista party and in the Cusmapa mayor’s office”said Don Luis Emilio Espinoza Fajardo, a member of the El Lajero de Cusmapa community.
Extortion and abuses with property titles
In the indigenous municipality of San Lucas, the board of directors of that Native People has been solely in the hands of former mayor Deysi Pérez Vásquez, her mother Dominga Pérez Videa (also a former mayor) and her daughter-in-law Reina Galeano, who for more than 19 years have decided the fate of the 33 indigenous communities, where statutes are constantly violated, laws are abused expropriating land. or they are sold without respecting the real property titles. Also, they charge large sums of money in taxes, according to various complaints collected by CONFIDENTIAL.
Photo: Confidential.
Lucia Gutiérrez, from the Los Canales community, in San Lucas, said that for 19 years, they have fought for elections to be called forl Governing Council of the Original Peoples dthe Municipality of San Lucas.
“Doña Dominga Pérez, her daughter Deysi Pérez and her daughter-in-law Reina Galeano, have prevented any manifestation of claims for having our authorities. They take you to legal proceedings, take away your property or take the original deeds and modify them in the mayors’ offices that have also been governing as a family. Another problem is that they have seized the assets of our organization, because they have the support of the Sandinista party.”he claimed.
In the indigenous municipality of Totogalpa, Madriz, the president imposed several years ago by the Sandinista authorities of the mayor’s office of this town, Carlos Iván Pérez, left for the United States. “His place was taken de facto by Wilmer Gutiérrez, who serves as legal advisor to the Totogalpina indigenous community. Nobody calls for elections, despite the fact that here we are without a president of the board of directors of the Original Peoples”said a source linked to the Totogalpa authorities, who asked to reveal his name, to avoid reprisals.
In the municipality of Telpaneca, the indigenous communities have not held elections for their local authorities for several years. Those who hold managerial positions are imposed by the Sandinista authorities of the mayor’s office.
“There, who commands and directs the board of directors of the indigenous community is the people of the Sandinista Front (FSLN) and the mayor’s office run by Dr. Acisclo Laguna, who is an ally for FSLN interests.”said Abner José Fuentes Lazo, whom we contacted via WhatsApp in the United States, where he has lived for four years after leaving Telpaneca.
Nor does the municipality of Mozonte, in the department of Nueva Segovia, escape the lack of choice of its indigenous authorities, since the former Sandinista mayor, Consuelo Rivera, has spent years controlling the board of directors of the Original towns from the area. While he was in charge of the municipality of that town, he never delegated the directive to another person and maintained a tight control of indigenous goods or properties.
Sandinista Front takes advantage of domain to exploit indigenous lands
The control exercised by these members imposed on the boards of directors of the indigenous peoples has allowed the Sandinista Front and the Ortega mayors of these towns to exploit areas of pine and oak, mining areas, and expropriate or buy productive lands, suitable for cattle ranching. and cultivation of grains and vegetables.
The municipalities most affected by logging have been San José de Cusmapa, in Madriz, and Mozonte, Nueva Segovia, where large amounts of pine wood are extracted without control, affecting those areas, which look desert-like, with the disappearance of many rivers that They have left a shortage of water for the consumption of the rural populations of the area.
Extensive properties of indigenous families dedicated to the cultivation of vegetables, basic grains and livestock have also changed owners, because their former owners have been forced, due to pressure from officials from the mayors’ offices and State institutions, to sell their lands to foreigners. , mainly from Estelí and Managua.
In the north of our country there are Chorotega peoples made up of the municipalities of San José de Cusmapa, San Lucas, Totogalpa and Telpaneca, as well as two Somoteño communities, while Mozonte is the only indigenous municipality in the department of Nueva Segovia, all organized in the Coordinator of Indigenous Peoples of Northern Nicaragua.
The autonomy of indigenous peoples is established in Convention 169 of the International Labor Organization (ILO), ratified by the State of Nicaragua, but the current regime of Ortega Murillo destroyed the ways and customs of life of indigenous communities and violated their statutes and autonomous laws.
The authority in these towns is exercisedno Boards of Directors elected in assemblies either councils open that are later certified by the municipal governments, according to Law 40 of Municipalities. Other important traditional authorities are the Councils of Elders either Monexicosthe mayors of Vara and the Chieftains.
