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economy, and a wide division between the wealthy and the poor. Throughout the reign of the
Nicaraguan Somoza family dictatorship, greed, lies, and fear were huge factors to the decline of
the economy and society. The people of Nicaragua have witnessed firsthand what lust for wealth
can do to a country; greedy Nicaraguan political leaders have fought to maintain their wealth
through acts of violence and taking advantage of the citizens in poverty. “Whether or not [the
Somoza family was] ‘moderately repressive’ in comparison to other dictators, [they] had robbed
the Nicaraguans of their freedom and dignity, and deserved their fate” (Feinberg, 1981). Over
time, the greed lead to further destruction, and the Nicaraguan revolution was a result of the
governmental mismanagement. Nicaragua is still recovering from the aftermath of the Somoza
Dynasty. To combat this issue, the people of Nicaragua need to work together rather than against
Nicaragua is a haven of beautiful land, fruitful crops, and gorgeous beaches. Although the
country is prosperous, throughout the 20th century corruption spread to the Nicaraguan people
and government. The root cause is one family: the Somozas. During the Somoza Dynasty there
were three prominent presidents, each maintaining greedy and tyrannical reputations: Anastasio
Somoza Garcia, Luis Somoza Debayle, and Anastasio Somoza Debayle. All three of them have
left a degrading mark on Nicaragua. Finally, after 43 years with a family of tyrants, the people of
Nicaragua were done dealing with the greedy ways of the Somoza’s. “The essential motivation
[for the Nicaraguan Revolutionary War was] moral outrage at the degeneracy, corruption and
brutality of the Somoza regime” (Feinberg, 1981). The Somoza’s degeneration of the economy
ignited the citizens of Nicaragua, led by the rebel group the FSLN (sandinistas), to start a
revolutionary war. The citizens of Nicaragua won the revolution and kicked out the Somoza
Government. However even after the end of the dictatorship, the government, economy, and
society were still left with the stain of the deviant Somoza dynasty.
The first of the Somoza family to become president was Anastasio Somoza Garcia. He
lay down the foundation for the corrupt reputation of his family's name. The dictatorship began
in 1936 when Anastasio Somoza Garcia saw President Sardino as a threat to his path to power.
Lead by Somoza, the National Guard kidnapped and killed Sardino. With Sardino gone, Somoza
Garcia was capable of corrupting the next election and securing himself the presidency.
Although it is evident that the barbaric Somoza was an awful leader for Nicaragua, he was
anti-communist and had charm, which earned him the United States’ full support and financial
backing. With the guiding hand of the United States, Garcia began building an empire to control
the economics, political power, and land of Nicaragua. With no surprise, Garcia took advantage
of the fortune he was receiving from the United States.“Through large investments in land,
manufacturing, transport, and real estate, he enriched himself and his close friends” (Merrill,
1993). For more power, he ensured he had control over the government.“He appointed relatives
to key positions, [and] controlled elections.” (Cavendish, 2011). Somoza managed the country
through these ‘puppets’. He had complete control over the politics in Nicaragua, and the money
circulating through the economy. While Somoza’s wealth and power increased, Nicaragua’s
society seemed to be long forgotten, headed for destruction. Nicaragua’s police, led by dictator
gambling, prostitution, drug trade, and smuggling. “Rather than being a professional national
police and military force, the guard was a sort of mafia in uniform, [serving simultaneously] as
the personal bodyguards of the Somoza family” (Walker and Wade, 2011). These profits
channeled right into the hands of Somoza. Towards the end of his presidency, he made some
smart decisions to maintain the trust and control of power in Nicaragua. He continued to
puppeteer the power of Nicaragua through his close ties within the Government. Throughout
Somoza Garcia’s presidency, misfortune, poverty, and violence was brought to the people of
Nicaragua, as Somoza built an immense fortune for the Somoza family. It was clear that Somoza
was a manipulative, and greedy tyrant. Suddenly in 1956, he was assassinated by some of his
political enemies. Although it was a shock, his reputation lived on vicariously through the
In 1956, the presidency and control of Nicaragua was passed on to Anastasio Somoza
Garcia’s eldest son, Luis Somoza Debayle. His younger son, Anastasio Somoza Debayle, took
control of the National Guard. Luis’ presidency left another stain on Nicaragua’s society. When
the Somoza’s promised a free election among the political parties, he took drastic measures to
stay in office and keep the trust of the Nicaraguans including creating a fake opposing party, “the
National Conservative Party (Partido Conservador Nacional-- PCN), to give a democratic facade
to the political campaign. Luis Somoza Debayle won the presidency in 1957 with little
opposition” (Merril, 1993). The Somozas were growing a legacy of lies and corruption among
the people of Nicaragua. Eight years later after suffering from heart issues, Luis Somoza died,
and Anastasio Somoza Debayle decided to run for president and continue the legacy of the
Somoza’s.
Debayle became the 73rd president of Nicaragua in 1967. While Somoza began a term
full of luxurious life and wealth, the people of Nicaragua began a term full of struggle. Like the
other Somoza dictators, he lied to the people to obtain what he desired. “He completely failed the
people of Nicaragua he professed to love. Through it all, General Somoza enjoyed a life of
ostentatiousness, while his people lived in poverty. His parties were lavish; his wine cellar,
enormous; his personal life a series of women and excess” (Goodsell, 1980). Nicaraguans began
to grow hateful and suspicious towards the wealthy leader because of his greedy and corrupt
ways. During Somoza Debayle’s Presidency, society began to rot, and so did the relationship
between Somoza and the people of Nicaragua. “Popular discontent also grew in response to
deteriorating social conditions. Illiteracy, malnourishment, inadequate health services, and lack
of proper housing also ignited criticism from the Roman Catholic Church, led by [the
Archbishop]” (Merril, 1993). While Somoza was out partying and living a wealthy life, the
citizens of his country were struggling to live any life. Nevertheless, the people of Nicaragua
finally had begun opening their eyes to the barbarity of the Somoza dynasty and were growing
sick of the foul conditions in their country. In 1972, a powerful 6.5 Richter scale earthquake hit
the capital of Nicaragua, Managua. Not only did this natural disaster ruin Managua, but the trust
between the people and Anastasio Somoza crumbled to dust. It seemed as though the earthquake
shook the government. To Nicaragua’s surprise, many international relief donations were sent to
the Nicaraguan government and dictator, Anastasio Somoza. However, Somoza Debayle’s
directed by the Somoza family and members of the National Guard, shocked the
international community and produced further unrest in Nicaragua. The president's ability
to take advantage of the people's suffering proved enormous. [His] personal wealth
Somoza’s greed and corruption was finally catching up to him, and this was the beginning of the
end. The Nicaraguan Revolution began in 1979; the FSLN was fighting to tear down Somoza
Debayle. People wanted Somoza out of Nicaragua. After long years of battle, Somoza resigned
and fled to Panama. In 1980, similar to his late father, he was assassinated at the hands of his
enemy, in this case the rebel group, FSLN. When the FSLN eliminated the dictatorship, they
began their own forms of corruption and struggled to rebuild the government. It was crystal clear
that the Somoza family had dug a ditch that Nicaragua couldn’t get out of. Throughout the
1980’s to 2007, there was a long fight between the Contras (U.S. led rebel group) and the FSLN;
who could govern nicaragua out of corruption and poverty? Both parties eventually were elected
in office during different terms, but they both struggled to bring Nicaragua back to prosperity.
Although many diverse governmental strategies were attempted to revive Nicaragua, the reality
is it is difficult to govern a corrupt country in poverty for over 40 years. However Nicaragua
In the 20th century the Somoza Dynasty was full of greed, which led the nation of
Nicaragua into poverty and corruption. Many different governing approaches have been made to
try and save the unfortunate country, but nothing seems to be enough. “Nicaragua has been
developing democratic institutions and a framework for economic development. Nonetheless, the
country remains extremely poor and its institutions are weak” (Merril, 1993). Anastasio Somoza
Garcia lit the spark to the fire of corruption, and Anastasio Somoza Debayle kept the fire
burning. Both of them were the main contributors to the char of destruction across Nicaragua.
The world needs to learn from the Somoza era, and not repeat Nicaragua’s mistakes. Nicaragua
needs to create a democratic system where all people have a voice, and where corruption has no
place. People need to be free. After the Nicaraguan revolution, the government and the people
have been on different terms and they need to work together rather than against each other.
Overall, it is crucial that Nicaraguans join their government with their people to combat the
Walker, Thomas W., and Wade, Christine J. . “The Somoza Era and the Sandinista Revolution.”
Nicaragua: Living in the Shadow of the Eagle . 5th ed., Westview Press, 2011.
https://uucsj.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Living-in-The-Shadow-of-the-Eagle-CH3.pdf
Goodsell, James Nelson. “The Somoza Legacy: He Failed the People He Professed to Love.”
The Christian Science Monitor, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Sept. 1980,
www.csmonitor.com/1980/0919/091947.html.
Merrill, Tim. “Nicaragua: A Country Study.” CountryStudies.Us, Washington: GPO for the
Cavendish, Richard. “General Somoza Takes over Nicaragua.” History Today, History Today
www.historytoday.com/richard-cavendish/general-somoza-takes-over-nicaragua.
Feinberg, Richard E. “Nicaragua and the Sins of Somoza.” The Washington Post, WP Company,
27 Sept. 1981,
www.washingtonpost.com/archive/entertainment/books/1981/09/27/nicaragua-and-the-sins-of-so
moza/aefecab9-6ce9-494d-89dd-2b33967f2389/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.1501a93f04d3.