ORTEGA GOVERNMENT TAGS CARDINAL OBANDO TO HEAD

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAGUA 000415 SIPDIS SIPDIS WHA/CEN E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/14/2017 TAGS: PGOV PINR KDEM NU PREL SUBJECT: ORTEGA GOVERNMENT TAGS CARDINAL OBANDO TO HEAD NATIONAL PEACE AND RECONCILIATION COUNCIL REF: A. MANAGUA 0350 ¶B. MANAGUA 0241 ¶C. 2006 MANAGUA 2725 ¶D. 2006 MANAGUA 2061 ¶E. 2006 MANAGUA 1370 Classified By: Ambassador Paul A. Trivelli. Reasons 1.4 (B,D). ¶1. (C) Summary: President Ortega's new National Peace and Reconciliation Council is the centerpiece of Ortega's September 15 accord with Nicaraguan Resistance Party leader Salvador Talavera. Ignoring Archbishop Leopoldo Brenes' reference to an August 2006 pastoral letter issued by the Episcopal Council stating no priest should participate in political parties or take public office, Cardinal Obando y Bravo accepted Ortega's offer to head the new council, asserting that the decision is the Pope's to make. In the Ambassador's recent meeting with Nuncio Jean Paul Gobel, the Nuncio was reserved in his assessment of Cardinal Obando's motives for accepting a position in the Ortega administration, while Archbishop Brenes did not hold back in his criticism of the Cardinal when he spoke with the Ambassador. Certainly, Obando's dismissal of the Archbishop's statements has tested Brenes' authority and that of Nicaragua's Catholic Church hierarchy. End Summary. ¶2. (C) President Ortega announced on January 30 the formation of the National Peace and Reconciliation Council (CONAREP),to be headed by Cardinal Obando y Bravo. The Council is the centerpiece of Ortega's September 15 accord with Nicaraguan Resistance Party (PRN) Salvador Talavera (Refs. A, C). Ignoring Archbishop Leopoldo Brenes' reference to the Episcopal Council's August 2006 pastoral letter reiterating Church doctrine that no priest should participate in political parties or assume public office, Obando accepted Ortega's offer and asserted that the decision is the Pope's to make, not the Council. ¶3. (C) According to the Ortega- Talavera agreement -- which Obando witnessed and whose stated purpose is to "consolidate peace and achieve economic development within the framework of equity and solidarity with our country's impoverished sectors" -- CONAREP will receive at least 1% of Nicaragua's annual national budget. However, given the National Assembly's recent vote forbidding the GON's new national councils to incur any government expenses (Ref. B),CONAREP's budgetary future may be in question. Nuncio: Obando Puts Vatican in an Uncomfortable Spot - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶4. (C) On February 9, Nuncio Jean Paul Gobel shared with the Ambassador his concerns that Obando is putting the Vatican in an uncomfortable spot, noting he was disappointed that the Episcopal Council did not issue a formal statement regarding Obando's participation in CONAREP. He explained that Episcopal Council members are divided over their views on President Ortega's motives for standing up CONAREP so soon after assuming the presidency and for appointing Obando to lead the new council. While some bishops believe that Ortega is exploiting Obando to "divide" the Church in Nicaragua (Archbishop Brenes and the formal hierarchy Vs. Obando and Ortega),others think Ortega is convinced that the gesture will truly serve to unite Nicaraguans -- who Ortega mistakenly believes would rally around Obando. Gobel asserted that Obando no longer enjoys support outside of Managua and his popularity has even waned in the capital. ¶5. (C) The Ambassador suggested that Ortega's sense of urgency in establishing the new council and his efforts to pass legislation to concentrate power in the Presidency likely stem from his fear that the two Liberal opposition parties may soon reunite and block Ortega's efforts in the future. Gobel mentioned that he would lunch with Obando the same day and hoped to determine Obando's intentions, and he will travel to Rome on February 11 to raise the matter. He speculated that Obando may be seeking the Vatican's opinion in the hopes that it will instruct him to decline the position. Gobel added that, while Obando's acceptance of the position may not literally violate Church law, including Canon 285 (prohibits priests from accepting public positions MANAGUA 00000415 002 OF 002 entailing the exercise of civil authority),doing so would certainly violate the spirit of the law. He hoped that the Vatican's secretary of state, who like Obando is a Salesian, could dissuade Obando from assuming leadership of CONAREP. Brenes Predicts Pope Will Take Strict Interpretation - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶6. (C) In Archbishop Leopoldo Brenes' February 13 meeting with the Ambassador, the Archbishop was unequivocal that priests should not assume public office. He contrasted CONAREP with the reconciliation committees of the early 1990s; while CONAREP is clearly an Ortega administration entity, the 1990s committees were sponsored by the OAS, not the Nicaraguan government. Thus, it was acceptable for priests, himself included, to participate in the OAS committees, explained the Archbishop. He opined that Obando's interest in accepting the CONAREP position is likely driven by his political ambitions, not/not an interest in reconciliation per se. In this context, he recalled the counsel of one of his early mentors, who had warned him that "power is a drug." Brenes explained that one of CONAREP's main functions will be to compensate former 1980s combatants and their families, a contentious process involving money and politics. ¶7. (C) Clarifying that the Episcopal Council is not authorized to discipline Obando for his acceptance of the CONAREP position because its duties are purely pastoral, the Archbishop explained that it is incumbent upon the Vatican to intervene. Brenes, who predicted that the Pope will be "strict" in his interpretation of canon law, remarked that popular opinion does not favor Obando's involvement in politics. Lamenting Obando's change in direction, the Archbishop likened the Cardinal's straying to that of a revered father figure who betrays his children. Comment - - - - ¶8. (C) While the Nuncio was more reserved in his assessment of Cardinal Obando's motives for accepting a position in the Ortega administration, Archbishop Brenes did not hold back in his criticism of the Cardinal. Clearly, Obando's dismissal of the Archbishop's statements has tested Brenes' authority and that of Nicaragua's Catholic Church. According to Brenes, a bishop from the Holy See's Family Affairs office will visit Managua shortly to discuss the Vatican's position on abortion, in light of the continuing debate here over last fall's legal elimination of the therapeutic abortion exception in the country's criminal code. Possibly, this representative will be tasked with delivering the Pope's decision to Obando. TRIVELLI