Nicaragua: The National Unity Movement (Movimiento de Unidad Nacional, MUN) and treatment of its members by police or other authorities; a disruption of an event organized by the MUN on 15 December 1999
| Publisher | Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 28 October 2002 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | NIC39627.E |
| Reference | 2 |
| Cite as | Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Nicaragua: The National Unity Movement (Movimiento de Unidad Nacional, MUN) and treatment of its members by police or other authorities; a disruption of an event organized by the MUN on 15 December 1999, 28 October 2002, NIC39627.E, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/3f7d4de731.html [accessed 26 May 2013] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
According to a report of 25 October 2001, the National Unity Movement (Movemiento de Unidad Nacional, MUN) is a political party
led by retired General of the Army Joaquín Cuadra, another former Sandinista who headed the Nicaraguan Armed Forces during the administration of President Violeta Barrios de Chamorro. Gen. Cuadra played a lead role in the effort to draft Mrs. Chamorro to run for president on the Conservative Party line (United States).
The MUN was unsuccessful in its attempt to be registered for the November 2000 municipal elections and Cuadra blamed the Supreme Electoral Council (Consejo Supremo Electoral, CSE) for "mishandling petitions" that would have given his party official status (NotiCen 27 July 2000; El Nuevo Diario 1 Nov. 2000). Moreover, Cuadra accused the CSE of being "subordinates" (supeditado) to current president Arnoldo Aleman, and denounced the electoral application process as arbitrary and devoid of legal support (La Prensa 22 Oct. 2000).
The Embassy of Sweden (Embajada de Suecia) in Managua subsequently stated:
Some smaller parties were grounded by the electoral council [CSE] already before the municipal elections [of] 2000, which meant that they were also automatically barred from participating in the general elections [of] 2001. A new party, MUN, managed to fulfil all the intricate rules for forming a new party. However, they were also ditched by the council - on some trumped-up legal detail - executing the political will of the two major parties. The only party that managed to survive and participate in the general elections was the Conservative Party, aided by international pressure (15 Nov. 2001).
No information about the treatment of MUN members by police or on a disruption of a 15 December 1999 event organized by the MUN could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
[Managua]. 1 November 2000. "Quien se enfrentara al fantasma de la guerra?" Embajada de Suecia, Managua. 15 November 2001. "Midyear Report - Development Cooperation with Nicaragua." La Prensa [Tegucigalpa]. 22 October 2000. "Nicaragua: obstaculos para candidatura presidencial de ex jefe del Ejercito." NotiCen. 27 July 2000. "Nicaragua: Opposition Parties Shut Out of Municipal Elections Assail Election Council." (NEXIS)
United States, Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) Resource Information Center. 25 October 2001. "Nicaragua: Information on the November 2001 Presidential and Legislative Elections." Additional Sources Consulted
IRB databases
World News Connection (WNC)
Internet sites
Bolsa de Noticias [Managua]
Confidencial
Global Exchange
Immigration and Naturalization Service
La Prensa [Managua]
Vision Sandinista
Search engine
Google
