Escalating The Contra Battle

By MICHAEL DUFFY.

When Ronald Reagan asked the House of Representatives last March to approve $100 million for the contras fighting the Soviet-backed Sandinista government in Nicaragua, the bid failed by twelve votes. A month later, parliamentary maneuvers foiled a second attempt, and the contras were again left in limbo. On a third try last week, the Administration finally patched together a twelve-vote margin in the Democratic-controlled House, securing not only an infusion of cash for the 20,000-man army but also a firsttime congressional commitment to provide military assistance openly to the rebels.

The President, who has persistently sought two-party support for the contras, called the vote a "giant bipartisan effort." Added a White House official: "It's not our biggest win. But it's one of the most satisfying in terms of both content and the fact that we came from behind." Opponents were more pessimistic, predicting that the aid would lead to greater U.S. military involvement in support of a corrupt rebel force. Said Michigan Democrat David Bonior: "The contra program has been rotten from the start."

That view was echoed a day later from the Hague, where the World Court ruled that the U.S. is violating Nicaragua's sovereignty by sponsoring the contras. The 15-member International Court of Justice, responding to charges filed by the Sandinista regime in 1984, after the CIA-inspired mining of Nicaraguan harbors, held the U.S. liable for unspecified reparations. The Administration, which challenged the tribunal's jurisdiction in the dispute, said it would ignore the judgment.

Since 1982 the Administration has funneled millions in not-so-secret aid to the rebels. But Congress has long been uneasy about such assistance and moved two years ago to restrict it to "humanitarian" supplies like boots and bandages. Capitol Hill has mirrored the national wariness; nearly two-thirds of the U.S. public opposes the aid, according to a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll. Reports of corruption in the contras' ranks have hurt the Administration's case as well. Government auditors reported that some $13 million of last year's $27 million in assistance could not be accounted for. In Miami two weeks ago, contra dissidents told reporters that field commanders had bilked the U.S. by submitting false receipts for food and supplies. Contra leaders denied the charges, but the Republican-controlled Senate Foreign Relations Committee has begun its own probe.

Still, the antipathy of House members toward the Sandinistas outweighed reservations about the rebels. Since the March vote, many House Democrats had tired of Nicaragua's intransigence in the slow-moving Contadora peace talks. They were also angered by a Sandinista attack on a contra camp in neighboring Honduras. The Administration early in June disclosed that the Soviet Union had made a direct military shipment to Nicaragua, and in a speech last Tuesday the President starkly portrayed the contras as the only force standing between the U.S. and a "Soviet military beachhead" in North America.

Reagan was even more persuasive in a personal lobbying effort, meeting with 30 Congressmen at the White House and telephoning 20 others, some from Air Force One as he sped west for a five-day vacation. Despite efforts by House Speaker Tip O'Neill, 51 Democrats deserted their party on the vote, providing a larger victory margin than many had expected. Said Wisconsin Democrat Les Aspin, the House Armed Services Committee chairman who surprised colleagues by switching to the Administration's side: "The negotiating track needs some military support. We need both sticks and carrots."

The measure is longer on sticks than carrots. If adopted by the Senate, it would immediately provide $30 million for nonlethal supplies and begin payment of $70 million in military aid in September. The money, to be used for badly needed training, transport and communications equipment, would be released in installments if the President certifies--and a congressional panel concurs --that peace negotiations were stalemated. In addition, unspecified "heavy weapons" included in the package cannot be delivered until February of next year. Though the Pentagon has not provided details, these weapons may include shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles.

To mollify critics and prevent American casualties from sparking deeper U.S. involvement, the bill forbids U.S. military advisers to the contras to operate within 20 miles of the Honduran-Nicaraguan border, although the White House indicated it would contest this restriction. The package also provides an additional $300 million in aid to Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Costa Rica, where faltering economies are far more threatening than Sandinistas.

Contra leaders say the assistance will at last allow them to map out a plausible military strategy. "We can program ahead for the next 16 to 17 months," said Alfonso Robelo, one of the three top rebel political chiefs who lead the United Nicaraguan Opposition. "For the first time we can count on more permanent support." But the military aid will also put pressure on the contras to show some results in Nicaragua. Insisted Louisiana Democrat and Contra Backer Buddy Roemer: "There will be no blank checks for the contras."

Even with U.S. assistance, however, the rebels are facing a 60,000-strong Nicaraguan army, equipped with as many as 38 Soviet helicopters. Few observers think the rebels can overthrow the Sandinistas, and it remains uncertain whether they can even slow Ortega's drive to consolidate one-party rule. In the short run, at least, U.S. support for the contras has had the opposite effect: the day after the House vote, the Sandinistas shut down La Prensa, Nicaragua's leading independent newspaper and hinted at new restrictions on opposition political parties.

With reporting by Laurence I. Barrett and Ricardo Chavira/Washington