Ortega announces cease-fire plan

Press, 24 September 1987, Page 6

Ortega announces cease-fire plan

NZPA-AP Managua President Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua said yesterday that his Government would start a partial 'truce and withdraw troops to, designated areas to open the way for a total ceasefire with United Statessupported Contra rebels. “We are working on concrete actions to make known the first zones where the cease-fire will be declared,” Mr Ortega said. He said the locations of the designated areas would be announced but did not give a timetable. The Leftist Government also announced that Radio Catolica, the Roman Catholic Church radio station, could reopen immediately. A communique read by

a Presidential spokesman, Manuel Espinoza, said that to achieve “an effective cease-fire,” Mr Ortega had decided to postpone offensive military operations in part of. the country and concentrate troops in designated areas. * It said the actions were unilateral and would allow’ the National Reconciliation Commission and other peace commissions in those regions "to explore the willingness of the counter-revolutionary chiefs to accept the ceasefire, and if this is positive, to arrange the procedures for carrying it out.” The announcements were the latest ,in a series of actions tb comply with a Central American peace plan that Mr Ortega and the Presidents of El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica and Guatemala signed on August 7. The creation of the Reconciliation Commission was one of the commitments in their agreement On Sunday, the Government said the opposition newspaper, “La Prensa,” would be allowed to resume publication after a shutdown of more than a year.