Democracy and Socialism in Sandinista Nicaragua

The authors argue that the democratic tradition and practice emerging in socialist Nicaragua has been so successful that it could well serve as a model for other Third World states. They analyze the ideology of the FSLN and the Sandinista movement and show that it is not in any way stock Marxist-Leninism. Instead, this nationalist variant of Third World Marxism is - like most others - a function of indigenous realities. The authors demonstrate that, although still affected by the residual impact of the revolution against Somoza and the increasing hostility of the United States, Nicaragua has seen the establishment of as many as three different forms of democracy: popular, participatory democracy (manifested in mass organizations); Western-style representative democracy (as seen in the 1984 elections and the resultant governmental structure); and Eastern-European style democratic centralism (shown in the functioning of the FSLN itself). They conclude with an assessment of the 1990 elections and their impact on the future of democratic socialism in Nicaragua.