Masaya (city)

Masaya
Coordinates: 11 ° 58 ′ N , 86 ° 6 ′ W Masaya on the map of Nicaragua	Masaya
	Masaya
Basic data
Country	Nicaragua
Department	Masaya
City foundation	September 2, 1839
Residents	140,000 (2001)
	City insignia
Detailed data
height	242 m
Time zone	UTC −6
	Market stall in Masaya

Masaya is a city in southwest Nicaragua , capital of the department of the same name near Managua , 14 kilometers north of Granada . It is called the "City of Flowers". The festival in honor of San Jerónimo takes place here in autumn .

geography

The city (approx. 140,000 inhabitants in 2001) is located on the eastern slope of the 635 m high Masaya volcano . The Masaya is one of the most active volcanoes in America, at the bottom of its 260 m deep crater there is a lava lake . After numerous eruptions in the 20th century, the volcano today usually emits larger amounts of sulfur dioxide clouds every day, the last (smaller) eruption was in 2008. The volcano and the national park surrounding it are now one of the tourist highlights of Nicaragua.

history

In 1978 the Nicaraguan people united in a nationwide general strike when the dictator Anastasio Somoza Debayle increased the repression under pressure from the Sandinista . The indigenous inhabitants of Masaya in the Monimbó district rose up on February 20, 1978. After a few days, the National Guard put down the resistance using massive force. 50 of the attackers were killed in the street fighting, while 343 were alleged to be dead on the part of the Indians.

In June 2018, residents of the city declared that they were in a state of rebellion against the regime of President Ortega . On the night of June 19-20, security forces and pro-government paramilitaries regained control of the city. There were firefights in three neighborhoods with at least three dead and 34 injured.

The Monimbó district stayed a month longer and thus for three months was stable behind the barricades and the indigenous community there was besieged by security forces. The Ortega clique gave orders to kill the children of the revolutionaries who brought him to power , was lamented in the neighborhood that became known during the uprising against Somoza , and the sociologist Adriana Trillos called the fear of history repetition depressing. On July 17, the paramilitary and security forces launched a reconquest offensive. Young men were taken away, several killed.

The author and himself a former Sandinistin Gioconda Belli said to the propaganda of Ortega's wife Rosario Murillo , who spoke of peace and reconciliation on 17 July 2018 while police and paramilitaries attacked the indigenous neighborhood with Kalashnikovs, sniper rifles and artillery, this was "more Goebbels as Orwell "(" This is more Goebbels than Orwell "),

economy

The city is the industrial and commercial center of the surrounding, agriculturally oriented region. Main products are fibers, cigars, shoes, leather goods, soap and starch. Indian handicrafts are also an important industry. There are numerous hammock manufacturers and sellers in the city, and handicrafts (mainly to tourists) are sold on two large markets (the old and the new).

sons and daughters of the town

Frescoes reminiscent of Masaya on the walls of the Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve cultural center ( Belgium , 1993).

Enrique Bolaños Geyer (* 1928), President from 2002 to 2007
Manuel García Moia (* 1936), painter of naive art
César Bosco Vivas Robelo (1941–2020), Catholic Bishop of León en Nicaragua
Óscar Duarte (* 1989), football player

Twin cities

Dietzenbach , Germany (since 1985)
Leicester , England
Nijmegen , the Netherlands
Prievidza , Slovakia

Friendship pact

Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve , Belgium (since 1989)

Individual evidence

^ Fights for Masaya in Nicaragua , NZZ, June 21, 2018, page 2
↑ Police in Nicaragua take district of government opponents , Die Zeit, July 18, 2018
^ ^A ^b Nicaraguans Fear Return To Civil War Past , Today Nicaragua, July 12, 2018; "Monimbo is one area where the protesters have held firm and the barricades remain, though the local community is practically besieged." / “He lost comrades and a leg after he was hit by a grenade fired from a rocket-propelled launcher. But nothing during a decade-long was prepared him for the pain caused by the death of his son in April, three days after protests broke out against the leader of that revolution, President Daniel Ortega ”
↑ Detained In Monimbó, Three Days Later Found In The Morgue , Today Nicaragua, July 23, 2018; "the riot police and the paramilitaries were taking the 'muchachos'"
↑ La muere se cruza con su verdugo en Monimbó , El Pais, July 20, 2018; "Fatalities in the clashes - the number fluctuates between four and six"
↑ 'Everyone is an enemy who's deserving of death, rape and jail': Death squads have returned to Nicaragua , Public Radio International, July 18, 2018

[1] Fights for Masaya in Nicaragua , NZZ, June 21, 2018, page 2

[2] Police in Nicaragua take district of government opponents , Die Zeit, July 18, 2018

[Return-3] A ^b Nicaraguans Fear Return To Civil War Past , Today Nicaragua, July 12, 2018; "Monimbo is one area where the protesters have held firm and the barricades remain, though the local community is practically besieged." / “He lost comrades and a leg after he was hit by a grenade fired from a rocket-propelled launcher. But nothing during a decade-long was prepared him for the pain caused by the death of his son in April, three days after protests broke out against the leader of that revolution, President Daniel Ortega ”

[4] Detained In Monimbó, Three Days Later Found In The Morgue , Today Nicaragua, July 23, 2018; "the riot police and the paramilitaries were taking the 'muchachos'"

[5] La muere se cruza con su verdugo en Monimbó , El Pais, July 20, 2018; "Fatalities in the clashes - the number fluctuates between four and six"

[6] 'Everyone is an enemy who's deserving of death, rape and jail': Death squads have returned to Nicaragua , Public Radio International, July 18, 2018