VZCZCXYZ0001
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHMU #2615/01 3522201
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 182201Z DEC 07 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY MANAGUA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1837
INFO RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS MANAGUA 002615 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/CEN, EB/IFD/OIA AND L/CID 
STATE FOR WHA/EPSC 
STATE PLEASE PASS TO USTR 
TREASURY FOR INL AND OWH 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EINV ECON USTR KIDE NU
SUBJECT: NICARAGUA: GON TO RESOLVE PROPERTY CLAIMS WITHIN TWO YEARS 
 
REF: A) MANAGUA 2324, B) MANAGUA 2442, C) MANAGUA 2494, D) MANAGUA 
2006 
 
SUMMARY 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) During a December 10 meeting with the DCM, Property 
Superintendent Yara Perez made clear the Government of Nicaragua's 
intent to resolve U.S. citizen property claims and other claims via 
its own timeline and criteria.  Perez repeated her allegations that 
some U.S. citizen claimants lacked evidence for their cases and that 
they had engaged in "improprieties" to gain compensation from 
previous governments, but she failed to provide evidence to support 
her accusations.  She clarified that the GON will prioritize the 
claims of those who were U.S. citizens before the Sandinista 
revolution over those who became U.S. citizens after the revolution. 
 The DCM pressed for more communication between the Embassy Property 
Office and the GON, but Perez only committed to meet directly with 
U.S. citizen claimants.  We will continue to pressure all levels of 
the GON to engage with us constructively to resolve the outstanding 
property claims of all U.S. citizens.  End Summary. 
 
GON INTENT ON RESOLVING CLAIMS BY ITS OWN TIMETABLE... 
 
 
¶2. (SBU) In his December 10 meeting with Property Superintendent 
Yara Perez Colero, the DCM emphasized that the resolution of U.S. 
citizen property claims is an important issue in our bilateral 
relations that receives significant attention at the highest levels 
of the United States Government (USG).  A key consideration in the 
USG's annual decision whether to waive Section 527 of the Foreign 
Relations Authorization Act of 1994 and 1995--which prohibits USG 
assistance to foreign governments that have not compensated U.S. 
citizens for confiscated property--has been the demonstrated effort 
the Government of Nicaragua (GON) has put forth to resolve 
outstanding claims.  The DCM noted that the Government of Nicaragua 
(GON) has resolved only nine cases so far this waiver year, compared 
to 38 cases during the 2006-07 waiver year and 86 cases during the 
2005-06 waiver year. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Perez said it is the GON's intention to resolve all 
remaining property claims within two years.  She explained that with 
President Ortega taking office in January 2007, officials in the 
National Confiscations Review Commission (CNRC) and the Office of 
Assessment and Indemnification (OCI) have needed time to review past 
claims.  Perez acknowledged that the Embassy Property Office has 
registered over 600 outstanding property claims, to which the Office 
of the Attorney General has given priority.  She claimed that the 
CNRC and OCI have worked on 85 Embassy-registered cases this year 
and will pick up the pace in 2008.  The DCM cautioned that some 
claims require more time to resolve and that the GON should give 
these cases the necessary attention, without imposing an arbitrary 
time limit, to ensure a fair resolution. 
 
...AND ACCORDING TO ITS OWN STANDARDS 
 
 
¶4. (SBU) The DCM asked Perez to explain how the GON arrives at 
so-called "no ha lugar" decisions.  Perez said the GON rejects 
claims when claimants (a) cannot prove they had owned the property 
in question, (b) cannot prove that the GON had ever expropriated the 
property, and/or (c) did not provide the necessary paperwork to 
settle a claim.  She noted that some U.S. citizen claimants have not 
provided any information in the last 8-10 years, and that these 
inactive claims will be closed.  In addition, Perez alleged that 
some U.S. claimants had received more compensation than they 
deserved because they had overvalued their assets.  In other cases, 
some U.S. citizen claimants had recovered their property and still 
managed to receive indemnification bonds (BPIs), constituting double 
restitution.  Perez cautioned that the Ortega administration would 
not tolerate corruption and would resolve cases according to the 
law. 
 
¶5. (SBU) The DCM responded that these are complex, sensitive cases 
that require additional time and cooperation between the Embassy 
Property Office and the GON to resolve.  The DCM asked Perez to 
provide information about dismissed claims and evidence of alleged 
improprieties to the Embassy Property Office.  The DCM reiterated 
the importance of more communication and cooperation between the 
Property Office and GON not only to solve claims, but to help 
provide explanations about dismissed cases to U.S. citizen 
claimants, the Department of State, and the U.S. Congress. 
 
GON DIFFERENTIATES BETWEEN AMCITS WHO WERE CITIZENS BEFORE AND AFTER 
THE SANDINISTA REVOLUTION 
 
¶6. (SBU) The DCM challenged the GON's new policy of prioritizing the 
resolution of claims by U.S.-born citizen over those of naturalized 
U.S. citizen claims.  Perez reiterated that the claims of those who 
were U.S. citizens before the Sandinista revolution would be 
prioritized over those who became U.S. citizens after the 
revolution.  She argued unconvincingly that prioritizing the claims 
of those who were U.S. citizens before 1979 was an administrative 
decision and not a policy change.  The DCM answered that the U.S. 
Government would continue to press for the resolution of all U.S. 
citizen claims Note: This preference based on citizenship at the 
time of the revolution is the latest iteration of a policy that 
first prioritized those who were U.S. citizens at the time of 
expropriation over those who gained citizenship after expropriation. 
 Perez later changed this to prioritizing natural born U.S. citizens 
over naturalized U.S. citizens (Ref A).  End Note. 
MORE CONTACT TO RESOLVE CLAIMS 
 
 
¶7. (SBU) Throughout the meeting, the DCM pressed Perez to 
communicate more frequently with the Property Office to facilitate 
the resolution of claims.  The DCM noted that the USG and GON share 
a mutual interest in resolving Embassy-registered U.S. citizen 
claims.  He emphasized that to achieve this goal, it is important 
that the Embassy Property Office and GON work together to ensure 
that cases are resolved in a fair and transparent manner.  Perez was 
reluctant to commit to direct contact with the Property Office.  She 
was willing to meet directly with U.S. citizen claimants.  The DCM 
emphasized that unless the Embassy and GON work together to resolve 
these outstanding claims, these cases will remain a point of 
contention in our bilateral relations. 
 
COMMENT 
 
 
¶8. (SBU) The DCM's meeting with Property Superintendent allowed us 
to convey to the GON that the Embassy will remain fully committed to 
resolving U.S. citizen property claims.  In our recent interactions 
with GON officials, they have emphasized that the Ortega 
administration is intent on closing all remaining property cases 
within two years.  As we move toward 2008 and the midpoint of the 
waiver year, we will press at all levels of the GON to engage with 
us constructively to resolve the outstanding property claims of all 
U.S. citizens.  End Comment. 
 
TRIVELLI