nicaragua

• largest country in central america
the republic of nicaragua is a country in central america. it was a spanish colony from the 16th century until 1821. us troops were stationed in nicaragua from 1912 until 1933, during which time the somoza family came to power, as leader of the national guard and the national liberal party (pln). general anastasio somoza was deposed by the sandinista national liberation front (fsln) in 1979 after a civil war which began in the early 1970s. daniel ortega saavedra became the nicaraguan leader. he was elected president in 1984. armed opposition to the sandinista government was led by the contras, who originally were the remnants of somoza's national guard, and were supported by the us. in 1990 violeta barrios de chamorro, of the national opposition union (uno), was elected president. civil disorder continued, with attacks by right-wing, re- armed contras, called recontras. nicaragua is a member of the organization of american states. it exports coffee, cotton, and bananas. nicaragua's economy was severely disrupted by the civil war. large foreign debts and high inflation are serious economic problems.