Blank Front Page

February 6, 2019

Nicaragua

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On January 18, La Prensa published a blank front page, along with an editorial titled “Have you imagined what it is like to live without information?” The editors explained that after 20 weeks of waiting for Customs to clear a shipment of newsprint and other needed supplies belonging to La Prensa, they had decided to run a blank front page:

The blank page and the question [at the bottom] are directed to the Nicaraguan citizenry, whose freedom of expression and access to information are under siege by the dictatorship.

Since the regime hardened its repression in response to citizen protests, on April 18 of last year, freedom of expression and access to information have been among the victims.

The independent media, be it radio, television, digital, or print, have been silenced one by one, further limiting the access to information that Nicaraguans had, which was limited to begin with.

Though the editorial claimed that this was the first time La Prensa had ever published a blank front page, Avil Ramirez gently reminded La Prensa’s editors that they had, in fact, published a blank front page in March, 1978. Mr. Ramirez was the Minister of Defense under the Bolaños administration. He also owns an impressive collection of old newspaper clippings and front pages, thousands of them digitized, dating back to the 1970s.

We have no way of knowing how Nicaraguans reacted the the blank front page in 1978, but we do now. Many Nicaraguans used the blank front page as a canvas to express their thoughts and vision about the Nicaragua so many of us want. These images were posted to social media, using the hashtag #laprensachallenge. Here is a short compilation, culled from Twitter (translations and additional comments below each tweet).

Cynthia Torrez is a journalist. Her version of the front page reads, “Nicaragua will be a republic once again.”, which is a quote from Pedro Joaquin Chamorro Cardenal. The same quote illustrates the tweet below, by twitter user @punisher_nic

This front page makes a bold prediction: “Ortega and Murillo Resign; 700 political prisoners liberated; borders open as a caravan of exiles returns; thousands attend mass at the cathedral, to honor 500+ martyrs”. LANICA9412 adds below:

“Of the front pages I’ve seen, this one stood out, and that’s why I share it. Let’s keep trusting that we will soon achieve the goal of peace and justice… Viva Nicaragua”.

“A headline we’ll see soon”, writes Twitter user Mercedes Vandalica. The headline reads “The civic and peaceful revolution that began in April triumphed. OrtegaMurillo are being tried for crimes against humanity.”

Journalist Amalia del Cid (La Prensa), writes “This is the front page I would love to see in La Prensa, our Republic of Paper.

“Nicaragua is Now Free (It’s really free now).”

From the Twitter account for Ocupa INSS, we get two front pages. The top one features Alvaro Conrado, the 15-year-old high school student who was among the first casualties of the repression. The bottom one shows headlines describing what many Nicaraguans wish will happen soon, e.g., that the nation will be free, that political prisoners will be released, and that Ortega, Murillo and their accomplices will be tried for crimes against humanity.

This front page features Daniel Ortega, identifying him by the number he was assigned when he was a political prisoner under the Somoza dictatorship. “Prisoner 198 returns to the place he should have never left.”

Graphic illustrator Ellierainy shared this design. “They can’t and they won’t shut up journalism, or art, or our voices”, she writes.

An poem by Ruben Dario and a cartoon by Argentinian cartoonist Quino illustrate these front pages.

“Nicaragua leaves its dark night behind. 10 months of terror come to an end. The people are victorious.”

“Insist, persist, resist, and never desist”

This example demands freedom for political prisoners.

Wrapping up, I leave you with this front page, paying homage to Alex Vanegas (a.k.a. marathon man). Mr. Vanegas was illegally detained on November 2 and being held in the Modelo prison, where he has been barred from running and exercising.

“Nicaragua will be a Republic once more” (Pedro Joaquin Chamorro Cardenal)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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