Tatianna Steiner

Comida Con Causa Research Paper

6/8/2018

The Destructive Greed of the Somoza Family

Greed within Nicaragua’s government relentlessly lead to dysfunction, a disastrous

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

each other to build a new and more improved economy.

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

Somoza, encouraged corruption and managed unorthodox and unconventional activities:

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

following Nicaraguan presidencies.

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

corruption was on full display through this debacle.

“The government's illegal appropriation and mismanagement of international relief aid,

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

soared to US$400 million in 1974” (Merril, 1993).

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

needs a dramatic change to set the society back on track to success.

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

issues, and save their country.

 Works Cited

Nicaragua.com. “The Infamous Somoza Family - English Blog.” ​Nicaragua.com - Nicaragua

Channel​, Nicaragua Channel, 2009, www.nicaragua.com/blog/the-infamous-somoza-family.

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

Library of Congress, 1993, countrystudies.us/nicaragua/11.htm.

Cavendish, Richard. “General Somoza Takes over Nicaragua.” ​History Today​, History Today

Volume 61 Issue 6, June 2011,

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.