VZCZCXRO0704
PP RUEHLMC RUEHRN
DE RUEHMU #1329/01 3051955
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 311955Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY MANAGUA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3316
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO PRIORITY 5563
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY
RUEHRN/USMISSION ROME PRIORITY 0003
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 0378
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAHLC/HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUMIAAA/CDR USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL//J2/J3/J5// PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 MANAGUA 001329 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR WHA/CNE 
DEPT ALSO FOR WHA/FO AND CA/OCS 
DEPT PLEASE PASS TO USAID/W, USAID/DCHA AND USAID/OFDA 
USAID/W FOR A/AID HFORE 
SOUTHCOM PLEASE PASS TO JTF-BRAVO 
SOUTHCOM FOR SCJ3 
SAN JOSE FOR OFDA SENIOR REGIONAL ADVISOR 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/08/2018 
TAGS: EAID PGOV MOPS AEMR CASC KPAO NU
SUBJECT: HURRICANE FELIX - ONE YEAR LATER 
 
REF: A. MANAGUA 1136 
     ¶B. 2007 MANAGUA 2417 
     ¶C. 2007 MANAGUA 2325 
     ¶D. 2007 MANAGUA 2211 
     ¶E. 2007 MANAGUA 2168 
     ¶F. 2007 MANAGUA 2148 AND PREVIOUS 
     ¶G. 2007 MANAGUA 2070 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Robert Callahan for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
¶1.  (C) SUMMARY: On September 4, 2007 Hurricane Felix made 
landfall in one of the poorest regions of Nicaragua, the 
North Atlantic Autonomous Region (RAAN).  The devastation by 
this Category 5 hurricane in Nicaragua was horrific; the 
government estimates 102 people died, and the storm destroyed 
thousands of homes and businesses, and damaged dozens of 
schools, community centers, and churches.  The United States 
was the first country to arrive with relief, and the largest 
single source of international aid, approximately $15.7 
million.  U.S. and other foreign assistance played a key role 
both in immediate humanitarian relief and subsequent efforts 
of economic reconstruction.  However, more than a year later, 
government corruption and its efforts to politicize 
international aid have stymied reconstruction and indeed, may 
have magnified the psychological, physical, social and 
economic problems of the region exacerbated by the storm,s 
arrival.  END SUMMARY. 
 
- - - - - - - - - 
The Perfect Storm 
- - - - - - - - - 
 
¶2. (SBU) Hurricane Felix, a Category 5 hurricane with 160 mph 
winds, slammed into the Atlantic Coast of northeastern 
Nicaragua and southeastern Honduras on September 4, 2007. 
Official sources reported that the storm killed 102 people, 
but NGOs reported more than 300 people perished, including 25 
Miskito fishermen lost at sea.  The hurricane completely 
destroyed the villages and naval outpost on the Miskito Keys, 
low level islands located approximately 43 miles from Bilwi, 
the largest city in the RAAN.  In the Puerto Cabezas 
municipality (which includes the city of Bilwi), the high 
winds damaged nearly every roof and many buildings were 
leveled.  GON officials estimated that the storm destroyed 
more than 10,000 homes (most of them in Bilwi) and that 
approximately 200,000 people were affected.  Along the 
Mosquito Coast, flooding and mudslides ruined homes and 
blocked highways.  There were almost no supplies and services 
available in the aftermath of the storm to address the 
devastation other than U.S. Government relief supplies, 
pre-positioned before the hurricane season by the Red Cross. 
The day after the catastrophe President Ortega visited Bilwi 
and promised to rebuild the damaged homes and help the 
victims.  Two days later, U.S. Ambassador Trivelli visited 
the region and brought actual aid. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - 
Struggling Population 
- - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶3. (C) One year after the hurricane little has changed. 
Despite tens of millions of dollars of construction 
assistance and building supplies from several international 
donor nations and NGOs, most RAAN hurricane victims have not 
been able to rebuild their homes.  Many victims feel that the 
government has not helped them enough.  One exception may be 
the community of Tuapi, where the Venezuelan government 
donated zinc/steel roofing materials to help victims rebuild. 
 However, in other communities, such as Sandy Bay, victims 
openly criticize public officials for their failure to 
 provide relief assistance after more than a year.  It is not 
a coincidence that Sandinista-Yatama Deputy Brooklyn Rivera 
and Yatama Bilwi Mayor Elizabeth Enriquez, who were both born 
in Sandy Bay, have still not visited the community since the 
catastrophe. 
 
¶4. (C) Hurricane victims not only suffer from physical 
deprivation caused by the hurricane, but also continue to 
suffer psychologically one year later.  There are many 
schools still in need of refurbishment, preventing 
school-aged children from returning to normal routines.  For 
example, students in Sinsin are still attending classes under 
tents or in the open air surrounded by pigs and chickens. 
Adults feel hopeless and are unmotivated; there are reports 
of depression and violent crimes within the communities. 
 
- - - - - - - 
Economic Woes 
- - - - - - - 
 
¶5. (SBU) The RAAN was already one of the poorest and 
least-developed regions of Nicaragua before Hurricane Felix 
struck.  GON officials estimate that the hurricane caused 
approximately C$869.3 million (US $46.7 million dollars) of 
damage.  The storm disrupted local businesses and created 
higher unemployment.   For example, in Bilwi/Puerto Cabezas 
the storm surge destroyed fishing fleets and killed 25 
Miskito fisherman.  Since the storm, the cost of living in 
the RAAN has increased more than four times.  For example, 
prior to the hurricane, a pound of rice cost C$3.50 (US 
$.18).  Now a pound of rice costs C$13.00 (US $.70). 
 
- - - - - - - - 
Broken Promises 
- - - - - - - - 
 
¶6. (SBU) President Ortega made an international plea for $292 
million dollars to rehabilitate the RAAN soon after the storm 
struck.  One year later, the GON has not announced the 
official amount of aid received or distributed. 
Unofficially, media sources estimate that between $50 to $100 
million dollars of aid came to Nicaragua.  Ortega also 
promised to organize a Consulting Group by February 2008 to 
coordinate the international donations.  One year later, the 
group still has not formed.  In mid-April, Vice Minister of 
Foreign Affairs Valdrac Jaentsce stated that instead of 
organizing a consulting group to coordinate international 
aid, the GON would establish an international forum to 
transform disaster aid into development proposals.  This 
still has not happened.  Now the GON intends to organize a 
Global Roundtable on International Cooperation that will 
focus on the RAAN. 
 
¶7. (C) On September 1, 2008, RAAN Governor Reynaldo Francis 
stated that the region needed $320 million in disaster relief 
and that the World Bank had already approved $17 million. 
The Ministry of Family (MIFAMILIA), one year later, has still 
not made an exact census of the hurricane victims. 
Nevertheless, Francis estimated that the GON has provided 
assistance to approximately 35 to 40 percent of hurricane 
victims.  However, the NGO Center for Justice and Human 
Rights of the Atlantic Coast (CEJUDHCAN) estimates that the 
regional government has only addressed, at best, one fourth 
of the population affected by the disaster. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
The U.S. and NGOs to the Rescue 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶8. (SBU) NGOs and international donor nations have been 
essential to the RAAN recovery from Hurricane Felix and are 
the main sources of aid to remote areas of the RAAN, 
delivering not only immediate economic and disaster relief 
but also providing valuable training to help victims become 
economically self-sustaining.  According to media reports, 
approximately 34 NGOs actively ran programs in the RAAN. 
International aid organizations and NGOs cooperating in the 
RAAN include: USAID, Accion Medica Cristiana (AMC), Action by 
Churches Together (ACT), Assistance from the Norwegian 
Church, CARE International, International Institute of Rural 
Reconstruction (IIRR), Canadian International Development 
Agency (CIDA), Adventist Development and Relief Agency 
(ADRA), Canadian Food Grains Bank, Catholic Relief Services 
(CRS), Diakonia Sweden, Pan American Health Organization 
(PAHO), Spain Pharmaceuticals, the Spanish Agency for 
International Cooperation, Canadian Local Initiative Fund, 
Horizon 3000 (the Austrian Organization for Cooperation and 
Development), Intermon Oxfam, UNICEF, Oxfam England, Tearfund 
England, European Community Humanitarian aid office (ECHO), 
World Vision, and the Christian Action Commission among 
others.  The Moravian Church also played a key role in 
coordinating relief efforts locally. 
 
¶9. (SBU) The United States was the first country to arrive in 
relief, and the largest single source of international aid, 
approximately $15.7 million in humanitarian assistance and 
economic development, airlift costs, and financing for home 
mortgages to help hurricane victims (see REF E and F). 
Victims were pleased that Ambassador Trivelli visited shortly 
after the catastrophe.  By the one year anniversary, USAID 
provided humanitarian assistance and economic development of 
approximately $7.2 million through a dozen implementing 
partners, including: the Nicaraguan Red Cross (NRC), ADRA, 
CRS, PAHO, CARE, Mision para Cristo, Moravian Church, and 
Save the Children.  Almost half of the USAID humanitarian 
assistance went through the World Food Program, which 
received approximately $3 million to address food shortages 
by providing two thousand metric tons of rice and 680 metric 
tons of fortified cereals.  The Department of Defense (DOD) 
provided approximately $1.5 million in airlift cost to bring 
emergency relief to the region.  The U.S. Overseas Private 
Investment Corporation (OPIC) support for mortgage lending 
amounted to $7 million, and Ambassador Trivelli invited one 
of Nicaragua,s largest banks to open a branch in Bilwi to 
provide construction and housing loans.  In addition, USAID 
and the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) 
implemented emergency assistance for flood victims of 
approximately $700,000, through CRS, Save the Children and 
ADRA. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Other NGOs, such as AMC, provided humanitarian 
assistance and trained hurricane victims in rural areas on 
improved cultivation techniques.   While the 2007 harvest was 
lost because of the hurricane, AMC training helped 
communities harvest 9 million kilograms (19.8 million pounds) 
of beans and cultivate approximately 3,500 hectares of rice 
in Waspam.  AMC community coordination established an early 
alarm system for emergencies, evacuated people from Cabo 
Viejo, constructed seven shelters and initiated 18 emergency 
projects in communities such as Tasba Pri, Raudales, and Rio 
Coco.  AMC also distributed food, materials, domestic 
supplies, shelters, water, medicine and coordinated 
transportation and storage in Tasb Pri, Bilwi, and Waspam. 
AMC,s aid amounted to over $800,000 dollars during the 
immediate aftermath of the emergency.   One year after the 
storm, AMC continues to provide rehabilitation assistance by 
improving agriculture production, reconstructing 
infrastructure, digging wells and latrines, and providing 
health care and emotional recovery. 
 
¶11. (SBU) USAID funded programs to several NGOs, donating 
fishing nets, boats and seeds to revive the agriculture and 
fishing sectors damaged by the storm.  For example, ADRA 
programming included agricultural rehabilitation assistance 
that included seeds, fertilizer and tools to cultivate 1,808 
hectares.  However, community members complained that the 
donated seeds came too late in the season to be effective 
(June instead of March).  For instance, the rainy season 
destroyed the cassava crop because it was planted too late. 
 
¶12. (C) Independent press in Puerto Cabezas has consistently 
recognized the U.S. Government as the most effective aid 
donor in the aftermath of the catastrophe.  However, 
Sandinista controlled media have emphasized Venezuelan and 
Cuban aid. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Government Corruption - the Biggest Obstacle 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶13. (C) There are many reports in the media and by our RAAN 
contacts that the central government has been negligent in 
estimating and providing relief.  Contacts tell us that the 
initial response to the disaster by the GON was slow - three 
days after local NGOs had begun providing relief.  Within two 
weeks after the catastrophe, GON required all aid groups to 
have a GON representative or someone from the Mayor,s office 
with them to exert control over the relief effort. 
Through-out the past year, the GON has practiced a policy of 
secrecy regarding aid statistics, distribution of aid, and 
economic relief for hurricane victims.  GON relief programs 
were disorganized and ineffective.  Certain government 
leaders, including the mayor of Bilwi, have allegedly used 
international relief funds and construction materials for 
personal projects instead of channeling it through public 
distribution systems.  There have been complaints that GON 
authorities consistently block civil society and private 
initiatives to act in the disaster zone.  Other NGOs 
complained that GON officials sought bribes in exchange for 
authorization to work in the RAAN (see REF C). 
 
¶14. (C) NGOs and community leaders criticize the local, 
regional and central government for corruption and 
politicizing the international aid by failing to distribute 
it fairly and transparently to the whole population.  For 
example, GON authorities estimate that they distributed 
14,836 tons of food to approximately 180,000 people in the 
RAAN during the past year.  The food donations were 
controlled by the Citizens Power Councils (CPCs), which are 
directed by the FSLN leadership.  Our contacts report that 
Yatama-FSLN party members received preferential treatment, 
and that non-party members were prohibited from receiving 
food aid.  There were also reports that food donations were 
sent to Managua and later illegally sold into local markets. 
 
 
¶15. (C) According to media reports and NGOs, the GON 
distributed less than 30 percent of the construction 
materials that they promised to the affected population. 
Instead, NGOs and international aid organizations have 
constructed the majority of the new homes in the RAAN one 
year after the catastrophe.  For example, the GON did not 
distribute all of the Venezuelan donations of zinc/steel 
roofing materials to the general population; instead it was 
given to Yatama-FSLN supporters and the remainder was left to 
rust in the Port Institute (EPN) fields. 
 
¶16.  (C) The Nicaraguan National Institute of Forestry 
(INAFOR) Director William Schwartz stated that Hurricane 
Felix,s powerful winds leveled approximately 10 million 
cubic meters of lumber, of which, only six million cubic 
meters could be salvaged due to limited access and capacity. 
The GON and RAAN regional government purchased five portable 
sawmills to help community members rebuild their homes using 
salvaged lumber.  Ortega issued decree 42-2008 that suspends 
the prohibition against exporting salvaged lumber, and the 
National Assembly has initiated legislation to allow the RAAN 
to benefit from selling the salvageable lumber.  However, our 
contacts in the RAAN report that the GON is granting 
preferential access and lumber rights to FSLN-Yatama 
supporters, in addition to commercial rights already given to 
U.S. and Canadian companies.  There were also reports by our 
RAAN contacts that CPC leader and FSLN Mayoral candidate 
Guillermo Espinoza was using salvaged lumber to buy votes, 
telling voters to &vote for me and I,ll give you wood to 
build your houses.
 
¶17. (C) Throughout the year the FSLN and CPCs have used their 
control over the distribution of aid to keep party members 
loyal, to campaign, and to buy votes.  Political parties used 
the anniversary of Hurricane Felix for their own campaign 
purposes.  After Yatama withdrew from its election alliance 
with the FSLN (see RefTel A), Yatama as well as the ALN 
political party presented their Puerto Cabezas mayor 
candidates during the memorial dedication at Miskito Key. 
 
- - - - 
COMMENT 
- - - - 
 
¶18. (C) Hurricane Felix was one of the worst natural 
disasters to strike Nicaragua,s RAAN.  The 160 mph storm 
winds and surge devastated coastal communities, disrupted the 
economy, and destroyed thousands of homes, as well as 
hundreds of schools, churches and community buildings.  The 
first wave of help from international aid organizations and 
local NGOs answered the call to bring immediate relief and 
disaster assistance in the storm,s aftermath.  More than a 
year later, many NGOs have remained active in helping 
thousands of poor families reconstruct their homes, farms and 
lives.  Meanwhile, the FSLN-Yatama controlled local, regional 
and central governments have failed to provide transparency 
and impartiality in the distribution of government aid 
programs.  Aid has been used primarily for political purposes 
instead of helping the victims -- the CPCs and FSLN-Yatama 
political alliance tightly controlled the distribution of 
relief, to encourage party loyalty, consolidate power, and 
buy votes for the upcoming municipal election.   By most 
counts, the region remains devastated, with only 25 to 30 
percent of the victims ever receiving assistance one year 
after the storm. 
CALLAHAN