Women were at the forefront of the socialist uprising that overthrew the US-backed Somoza dictatorship and made up a third of the Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional’s combatants.
“The revolution cannot be done without the participation of women” – FSLN Commander Doris Tijerino
"On this day 44 years ago today, the communist guerrilla Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional ended the rule of the US-backed Somoza clan in Nicaragua, which plundered one of the poorest countries in the region for 42 years. Here is an album that captures their fighting spirit during the revolutionary period.
The FSLN was named after the resistance leader Augusto Sandino, who fought the US occupation of Nicaragua from 1912-1933. Inspired by the armed liberation movement that turned the global colonial order on its head, the FSLN defeated Somoza in 1979 with a combination of urban and rural armed struggle.
However, the revolution faced the immense challenge of rebuilding the impoverished country, as the dictator left behind empty coffers and $1.5 billion in foreign debt. The Sandinista also faced US imperialism, which feared “another Cuba” in Central America, and sought to bring the revolution to its knees with devastating sanctions and a dirty contra war.
The new revolutionary political system survived, and life expectancy increased from 51.6 years in 1970 to 62.3 years in 1985. Women have been a key part of the revolution – 50% of Nicaraguan political candidates to become lawmakers have to be female. The illiteracy rate, nearly 43 % in 1970, was reduced to 13 % by 1985."