The major events in Nicaragua in 1980s include the Sandinista regime and the US interventions in the country. The Sandinistas took power in 1979 after Nicaragua experienced an intense civil war in which over 30,000 people were killed in the fighting and about half million homeless (Hager & Snyder, 2015). Moreover, most of the defeated National Guard escaped into the neighboring Honduras and regrouped as the Contras (contrarrevolucionarios) to launch counter attacks. The purpose of this essay is to discuss the relevance of the highlighted events to Harold Pinter’s theme of Art, Truth, and Politics
The US Interventions in Nicaragua
The main intervention of the US in Nicaragua in 1980s is the effort by President Reagan’s efforts to support military movements against the communist and Soviet supported governments. The US therefore played a significant role in the Contra War that began as a series of rebellion against the Sandinista government in 1981 (Hager & Snyder, 2015). Apart from training and equipping the Contra, America stopped all the aids into Nicaragua in the period with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) setting to cripple the nation’s infrastructure. The second half the 80s saw the Contra increasing their pressure at the borders with Nicaragua experiencing a significant economic decline.
Conclusion
The Pinter’s theme of Art, Truth, and Politics majorly describes how politics tend to avoid the truth that is sought extensively in the arts. The relevance of the theme to the events in Nicaragua in the 1980s is mainly observed in the nature of the US foreign policy during the period that sought to attain geopolitics dominance by destabilizing countries and regions. In conclusion, Pinter can be seen to use his arts as a way of highlighting the political dynamics during the period.
Reference
Hager Jr, R. P., & Snyder, R. S. (2015). The United States and Nicaragua: Understanding the Breakdown in Relations. Journal of Cold War Studies, 17(2), 3-35.
