About Nicaragua

                                         Ethnic Exclusion

“”A negra (black woman) from Bluefields was looking at me, very strange, for a long time, and a couple of days later, I got sick.” I know she caused it… You didn’t see her eyes”.

– (Lancaster 1991)

 

For this individual project, I want to learn more about ethnic exclusion in Nicaragua. There are different ethnic groups in Nicaragua such as the Rama, Mayagna, Miskitu, Garifuna, Creoles, and Mestizos. These ethnic groups have many differences. As a result of differences, tensions are bound to rise. The race relations within Nicaragua are very intense and there is a feud between the land especially in the Atlantic Coast where the indigenous groups reside. The indigenous people of Nicaragua (Miskito, Mayangna, and Rama) are not given the respect that they deserve.  For this specific project, I will focus on one specific group—The Miskito People and the Ethnic Exclusion that they face mainly from the Mestizos. This is especially true in regards to Nicaraguan settlers moving into their land. As a result, there has been bloodshed. “The geographical separation between the Mestizos and the minorities also contributes to the violence and destruction that has been occurring” (Lancaster 1991). The Majority of Nicaraguans are considered to be “Mestizos” and they view the Miskitos and Blacks as “backward and inferior in many ways” (Lancaster 1991). Although Lancaster had written about racism in Nicaragua almost twenty-five years ago, this issue is still prevalent today as seen with the settlers trying to move into indigenous territory. One other interesting aspect that I found from Lancaster’s article is that “The Atlantic Coast Minorities—blacks, who speak English, and Indians, who speak Miskito or English (and occasionally Sumo or Rama)—are not part of national Nicaraguan culture” (Lancaster 1991).

Miskito People:

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Probable Causes of Ethnic Exclusion in Nicaragua:

  • The FSLN (Frente Sandinista de la Liberacion Nacional) was too aggressive in its early attempts to bring revolution to the Coastand its distinctly non-revolutionary peoples, who tended to see the revolution as a “Spanish thing”—and therefore, not good. In short the Sandinista’s wanted to impose their own will on the peoples of the Atlantic region.
  • Sandinista government gave the Atlantic Coast its first legal ethnic organization but Miskito demands quickly exceeded the framework of that ethnic organization.
  • Various Miskito factions joined the Contras not to overthrow the Sandinista government but to establish their own autonomy.
  • Atlantic Coast came to be seen as rebellious and aggressive territory.
  • Many Nicaraguan families from the western region lost sons in the fighting and thus, have a deep hatred towards the Miskito people.
  • The Sandinista government tried to restrict the sale of turtle meat by the Miskito. This enraged them because hunting turtle meat was an economic livelihood of the Miskito people.

How Has That Animosity Affected the Miskito People:

  • The Miskitos find themselves at the bottom of the local ethnic hierarchy, taking the least desirable and lowest-paying jobs.
  • In the gold mines of Bonanza, for example, Miskitos have always been subjected to the most dangerous and grueling tasks in the mine shafts, where they suffer the highest rates of silicosis, a debilitating and permanent pulmonary disease.
  • The Miskitos also take poorly paid agriculture jobs, and suffer from high rates of illiteracy and alcoholism.
  • Many companies who hire Miskito workers to do dangerous work such as lobster diving have cut their salary. Lobster diving is dangerous because the companies do not provide prevention measures, adequate equipment, training and immediate medical attention. These Miskito divers are doing these dives with their bare hands and many are dying/becoming paralyzed.

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Most Recent Problems: Land Issues 

“This is the fault of the colonists. We have been on our lands for thousands of years, and they come and they invade us. We ask them to leave, and they start shooting at us, they have no respect for our soul, so we don’t have any respect for them.”

-Ambrosio LaicotUnknown-4

  • Mestizo settlers are attacking Indigenous communities with automatic firearms, murdering, ravaging and leaving Miskitos no choice but to flee their ancestral lands.
  • Dozens of killings and kidnappings of Miskito men and women are coming to light.
  • Indigenous people have legal ownership to that land as a result of the Communal Property Regime Law 445 and the Demarcation Law yet that does not stop the Mestizo settlers from encroaching unto their land.
  • The Nicaraguan government has not officially acknowledged any of the most recent and most violent killings, illegal land seizure by the Mestizos or deforestation problems.

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Conclusion: After doing much research, I have concluded that the Miskito people and the Mestizo have a rough road ahead ahead of them. Not only is there ethnic exclusion but now, the Miskito people are having their lands ripped from them. The Miskito people need more support if they are to fend off their lands from invaders. Their lands resources seems to be worth more to the Mestizo settlers than Miskito lives. From analyzing history, I know that violence can never be solved with violence. There has to be another way. The Miskito people face extinction if they stay and fight for their homelands because they are outmatched. This is no longer an issue of discrimination. Now, people are being murdered over land. Someone must take action.

 

Check out the following links for more information about the issues facing Miskito and Indigenous people, check out the following link:

Easy Miskito Video

Indigenous Wars Video 

Eviction-Nicaragua, Death in a Forest

Miskito Nation Under Seige

Black Culture in Nicaragua