BROOKLYN RIVERA SHOT - ALMOST

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAGUA 000079

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR KRAAIMOORE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/13/2018
TAGS: PGOV PHUM NU
SUBJECT: BROOKLYN RIVERA SHOT - ALMOST

REF: A. 08 MANAGUA 1136

B. 08 MANAGUA 1149

Classified By: Amb. Robert J. Callahan for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: On December 27 an angry Miskito Indian shot
at Yatama party leader and North Atlantic Autonomous Region
(RAAN) National Assembly Deputy Brooklyn Rivera during a
campaign visit to Kuamwatla. While Rivera's life was spared,
the incident reveals the evaporating support he has among
Miskito Indians in the RAAN upset by the political games and
bad management of Yatama mayors in Waspam, Puerto Cabezas and
Prinzapolka. END SUMMARY

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CLOSE CALLS FOR RIVERA
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2. (C) During a campaign trip with Yatama Prinzapolka Mayor
Candidate Lidia Coleman Bons to the Miskito Indian coastal
community of Kuamwatla on December 27, a young Miskito
attempted to shoot Yatama Leader Brooklyn Rivera. Rivera, a
National Assembly Deputy from the RAAN and long-time Miskito
leader, is the architect behind the unpopular alliance betwen
Yatama and the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN).
Instead of shooting Rivera, the young man shot his own mother
in the leg, who got between Rivera and the young man,
desperately trying to prevent the incident. After the
shooting, Rivera and Bons fled the area for their lives
instead of holding the campaign event. Community members
later berated the wounded mother for interfering.


3. (C) On January 8, Rivera traveled to the remote Miskito
Indian community of Auya Pihni to hold an election meeting.
His visit, coincidentally, came at the heels of a visit by
EmbOff to the same community two hours earlier. Rivera was
poorly received by the assembled community members. After
being heckled by angry Miskito farmers, he was forced to end
his meeting and flee the community. Our contacts tell us
that later that same day FSLN mayor candidate Guillermo
Espinoza came to the same community and brought two pounds of
pork for each family in order to garner support for FSLN
candidates.

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WHAT IT MEANS
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4. (C) The Kuamwatla shooting incident and the failed Auya
Pihni campaign meeting are the latest examples of the
collapsing support Rivera has within the Yatama party. He is
held personally responsible by the Miskito Indian community
for failing to advance their interests above his own.
Community members feel especially betrayed by his political
alliance with the Sandinistas, who were arch enemies of the
Miskito people during the civil war / Contra period.
Moreover, the Yatama-elected mayors in Waspam, Puerto Cabezas
and Prinzapolka failed to bring the needed relief to the
rural communities after the devastating Hurricane Felix.
Instead, these same leaders have reportedly enriched
themselves by stealing from the international aid, such as
allowing construction materials to be transported to Managua
to be resold at market prices. Locals complain that they are
ignored by Rivera until elections roll around.


5. (C) COMMENT: Rivera, a former Contra leader, is in the midst of a serious personal political crisis. It seems that his bad behaviors and Machiavellian maneuvers to control the Yatama party are catching up to him and his political base is rebelling. There are parts of the RAAN where he is clearly not welcome, and even some where he is under threat of death if he shows up. The roadblocks in the RAAN (Septel) may be his last opportunity to salvage some kind of political support from the FSLN to survive the growing storm. END COMMENT
CALLAHAN