World Notes Nicaragua

The decade-long civil war between the U.S.-backed contra rebels and the Sandinistas is supposed to be over. It has been 18 months since a coalition led by President Violeta Barrios de Chamorro ousted the Sandinista National Liberation Front in free elections, and 14 months since about 27,500 contras voluntarily surrendered their weapons. But harassment by the army and police, which remain under Sandinista control, has driven about 1,000 so-called recontras to rearm, threatening a recrudescence of the war.

There have been 52 killings of demobilized rebels since July 1990. In retaliation, the recontras have attacked cooperative farms established by the Sandinistas. The former rebels are also angry about Chamorro's coddling of the Sandinistas, who refuse to return the houses and land they expropriated and then divided among themselves before they left office.

This month, Chamorro vetoed legislation intended to roll back the giveaway, prompting her own coalition to accuse her of betraying voters. The U.S. has volunteered to pay to recover weapons from Sandinista and ex-contra civilians, a policy Managua does not favor because it fears former Sandinistas will pocket the cash and get other guns, possibly from the army.