Arnoldo Alemán
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| Arnoldo Alemán | |
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| In office January 10, 1997 – January 10, 2002 |
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| Preceded by | Violeta Barrios de Chamorro |
| Succeeded by | Enrique Bolaños |
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| Born | January 23, 1946 Managua, Nicaragua |
| Nationality | Nicaraguan |
| Political party | Constitutionalist Liberal Party |
José Arnoldo Alemán Lacayo (born on 23 January 1946, in Managua) was President of Nicaragua from 1997 to 2002.
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[edit] Biography
Alemán received his early education at the La Salle institute in Managua. In 1967 he graduated with a law degree from the National Autonomous University of León with specializations in regional economic integration and financial law. Between 1968 and 1979, he worked as a lawyer in the commercial and banking world. He became an official in the government of Anastasio Somoza Debayle. In 1980 he was arrested by the Sandinista junta, had some of his property seized and spent 9 months in prison. The period of his arrest coincided with the death of his father. This kept him from attending his father's funeral.[1] After he was released from prison, he spent some time in the United States.
Upon his return to Nicaragua, Alemán became heavily involved in business, political, and academic activities. He was a member of the Consejo Superior de la Empresa Privada (COSEP, 1988-1990), vice-president of the Unión de Productores Agropecuarios de Nicaragua (UPANIC, 1986-1990). He was president of the Asociación de Cafetaleros de Managua (1983-1990); the Unión de Cafetaleros de Nicaragua (UNCAFENIC, 1986-1990); the Federación de Municipios de América Central (1992-1993) and of the Federación Municipal de Ciudades de Centroamérica (1993-1995). He also imparted conferences at Tulane University and at Florida International University in the United States.[2]
In the early 1990s he became mayor of Managua after working for two months as councillor in Managua. He was popular due to his urban renewal projects which helped spruce up the city, severely damaged and never rebuilt after a 1972 earthquake. He became known as 'El Gordo'.
Alemán became president of and helped resurrect the Liberal Alliance. Besides the PLC, other members of this alliance were the Partidos Neoliberal (PALI), Liberal Independiente de Unidad Nacional (PLIUN) and the Liberal Nacionalista (PLN). On the first of September 1995 he resigned as mayor in order to be able, under Nicaraguan Law, to postulate himself for the upcoming elections to the Nicaraguan presidency.[3]
In 1996 he campaigned for president as the Liberal Alliance's candidate under a strong anti-Sandinista platform. It is reported that unidentified individuals attempted to shoot Alemán, killing one of his bodyguards in the process.[4] He defeated Daniel Ortega, the Sandinista leader, by 48% of the vote to Ortega's 40%. Many claimed widespread election fraud and Ortega refused to concede.
Alemán was successful in promoting economic recovery with reduced inflation and growth of GDP. Foreign investment grew during his administration, which helped to improve Nicaragua's infrastructure. Under his slogan of "Obras, no palabras! (Actions, not words)", Alemán directed a comprehensive reconstruction of the roadway system throughout Nicaragua. During the 1980s, roads throughout the country had deteriorated to the point that many were little more than sparsely-paved dirt trails. Alemán also created a program to build schools throughout Nicaragua in some of the poorest regions.
He has participated in international conferences and some awards given to him include the Orden Nacional al Mérito of the Colombina Government and the Orden de Isabel la Católica of the Spanish government.
His first wife, Maria Dolores Cardenal Vargas died of cancer in 1989. Alemán has two sons and two daughters by his first wife.[5] After nine years of her death, on October 23 1999, he married Maria Fernandez Flores Lanzas, with whom he has two daughters and a son.[citation needed]
[edit] Corruption charges and conviction
While President Alemán is reported to have developed a strategic alliance with Ortega to rule without effective opposition by offering employment in public offices and other privileges to key members of the Sandinista party, in order to make the country stable but there are those who claim that the real purpose of this agreement, which led to a constitutional reform, was to distribute the institutions of the state in proportion to the power managed by the two main political parties of the country.[6] At the same time it is alleged that Alemán was concealing massive corruption in his administration. At the end of his presidency, public information about alleged corruption committed under his government became available.[7][8]
Alemán was succeeded by his vice president, Enrique Bolaños. Bolaños accused Alemán of widespread corruption and was integral in exposing this alleged corruption throughout the Alemán administration. The scheme was reported to have involved several members of Arnoldo Alemán's closest family, including a brother and sister, as well as Alemán's daughter María Dolores Alemán. Ex–ministers and close friends were also charged, some of which have months ago abandoned the country. However, one of the central figures in the corruption complot, the former Chief of Department of Taxes Byron Jeréz, remains in prison since March on the basis of another charge of corruption. All in all, fourteen persons were charged."[9][10] Several times foreign governments have frozen Alemán's bank accounts in those countries and threatened to confiscate the funds. In such cases, his land of defense has been to claim that the funds were not stolen, but that they came from his coffee plantations.[11]
Alemán was formally charged in December 2002, and on 7 December 2003 he was sentenced to a 20-year prison term for a string of crimes including money laundering, embezzlement and corruption.[12] During his trial, prosecutors produced evidence showing that he and his wife had made extremely large charges to government credit cards, "including a $13,755 bill for the Ritz Carlton hotel in Bali and $68,506 for hotel expenses and handicrafts in India."[13] Because of health problems, he had been serving his prison term under house arrest. He is also barred from entering the United States.[14] In April 2007, legislators from the Sandinista party and Alemán's PLC party passed a law reducing the maximum penalty for money laundering to five years. The law will apply retroactively to Alemán, meaning that his prison term will be shortened by 15 years, and he will be set to be released in December 2007.[15]
Berlin-based anti-corruption lobby group Transparency International has ranked Alemán as the world's ninth most corrupt leader in history for embezzling a total of approximately $100 million from the people of Nicaragua.[16].
[edit] Bibliography
- Anderson, Leslie “The Authoritarian Executive? Horizontal and Vertical Accountability in A New Democracy: A Nicaraguan Perspective,” Latin American Politics and Society Vol. 48, No. 2 (Summer 2006), 141-69.
- Close, David and Kalowatie Deonandan. eds. 2004. Undoing Democracy: The Politics of Electoral Caudillismo. Lanham: Lexington Books.
- Kampwirth, Karen. 2003. “Arnoldo Alemán Takes on the NGOs: Antifeminism and the New Populism in Nicaragua” Latin American Politics and Society Vol. 45. No. 2. (Summer). pp. 133-158.
- McConnell, Shelley A. “Nicaragua’s Turning Point,” Current History (February 2007), 83-88.
- Rogers, Tim. "Why Nicaragua's Caged Bird Sings", Time Magazine, 2007-05-02. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
[edit] References
- ^ Nicaragua Actual Arnoldo Aleman Lacayo, Biografia.
- ^ Nicaragua Actual Arnoldo Aleman Lacayo, Biografia.
- ^ Nicaragua Actual Arnoldo Aleman Lacayo, Biografia.
- ^ "Nicaraguan Candidate Escapes Armed Attack", New York Times, 1996-1-26. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
- ^ Nicaragua Actual Arnoldo Aleman Lacayo, Biografia.
- ^ Global Integrity - 2004 Country Report
- ^ Lacey, Marc. "Nicaragua: Ex-Leader To Fight For Seized Funds", New York Times, 2006-12-29. Retrieved on 2007-08-08.
- ^ Rohter, Larry; Forero, Juan. "Unending Graft Is Threatening Latin America", New York Times, 2005-07-30. Retrieved on 2007-08-08.
- ^ MS Central America - Ex-president Alemán charged with corruption
- ^ Global Integrity - 2004 Country Report
- ^ Arnoldo Alemán apelará en Atlanta confiscación fondos familiares Noticias Mundo
- ^ "Nicaragua: 20-Year Sentence For Ex-President", New York Times, 2003-12-09. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
- ^ Jordan, Mary. "Facing Charges, Not Discomforts", Washington Post, January 8, 2005. Retrieved on 2007-08-06.
- ^ Marquis, Christopher. "Bush Official Is Seeking to Bar Entry to Corrupt Latin Officials", New York Times, 2002-03-13. Retrieved on 2007-08-07.
- ^ Rogers, Tim. "Why Nicaragua's Caged Bird Sings", Time Magazine, 2007-05-02. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
- ^ Transparency International Global Corruption Report 2004
| Preceded by Violeta Barrios de Chamorro |
President of Nicaragua 1997–2002 |
Succeeded by Enrique Bolaños |
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