The Jaguar Smile : A Nicaraguan Journey

by Salman Rushdie

Release Date: 01 September, 2003

Edition: Paperback

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Book, subject even more so, deserves reevaluation

I just saw a film on present-day Nicaragua, a country that's no longer flavour of the month, at least as far as the world's press is concerned. It's been at least 15 years since I've read this book. I liked it fairly well then, and feel that, though Rushdie might have been a bit too kind to the Sandinistas (who deserve much of the criticism they received) the fact that Nicaragua was robbed blind by Somoza (who stole relief money for the earthquake that hit Managua in the 1970s)and, it seems, by the penultimate president, Aleman (convicted of financial wrongdoings but certainly not jailed)gives the Sandinistas' programs (redistribution of land,literacy, and the equal participation of women in Nicaraguan life)some credibility.

How can Salman Rushdie "understand" Nicaragua?

Here we go again. In the mid-80s, Nicaragua was full of Internationalists, who were dedicated socialists and communists from wealthy countries with wealthy backgrounds, "sacrificing" by living in houses formerly owned by the upper and upper middle classes and stolen by the Sandinistas. They ran their Air-conditioners full blast, used expensive resources, and never had to pay a penny. All courtesy of the corrupt Sandinista government that was using them to help win the media war in the US, Canada, and Western Europe.

The "treatment", as it was known in Sandinista circles, was also applied to media dignitaries. Although they did not benefit from free housing, they were put up in the best hotel in Managua, chauffered around, and "given-access" to charismatic revolutionaries in exchange for favorable reviews.

Salman Rushdie, while a fantastic writer, is not an expert in Nicaraguan politics, or history. While mildly critical of the Sandinistas, he fell for the charm of some of their leaders. He gathered information that he felt represented reality in Nicaraguan life, and then wrote about it. Unfortunately, this representation is completely skewed, and misses the points of Nicaraguan history.

Canadians, how would you like to have Mr. Rushdie spent 6 weeks in your country, and then tell you how the country should split up?

Americans, how would you like Rushdie to spend 6 weeks in Washington and then tell you that you should not retailiate for the Sept. 11 attacks?

As proposterous as that sounds, that is exactly the point of his book when it came to Nicaraguan politics in the mid 1980s.