US ambassador to Nicaragua ignores calls to end comments on election
13:32 Saturday April 22nd 2006
The US Ambassador to Nicaragua has dismissed calls on him to stop
commenting on the country's November presidential elections, saying he
was free to express opinions about any subject.
Amid charges US authorities had conspired to influence the election,
Paul Trivelli said he was merely working to defend Nicaragua's
democratic process. ``Obviously I'm not going to start yelling every
day, but this is a country where one can express one's opinions,'' he
said.
Nicaraguan leaders have accused the US government and Trivelli of
pressuring the ruling Constitutionalist Liberal Party to nominate a
presidential candidate not linked to ex-president Arnoldo Aleman.
Aleman, who left office in 2002, was subsequently sentenced to 20 years
in prison for fraud, misappropriation of public funds, embezzlement and
criminal association. However, he remains the most-powerful force in
the Constitutionalist Liberal Party.
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