SUMMARY
The Contras, short for Counterrevolutionaries: Contrarevolucionarios, was the name for the myriad of forces that engaged in armed conflict against the Government of Nicaragua after the Somoza regime was overthrown by the FSLN and replaced with the Sandinista regime in 1979 (for more information, see Nicaragua: Government conflict). Among these, the Nicaraguan Democratic Forces (FDN) was the most dominant political-military force, which formed in August 1981 as a merger of the Nicaraguan Democratic Union, the September 15 Legion and the Misurasata Indian Movement. Their objective was to liberate Nicaragua from the Sandinista government regime.
Especially in the beginning, most Contra members were ex-National Guards that had been loyal to the preceding Somoza government regime and were forced to flee Nicaragua when the FSLN took over the government. Nonetheless, Contra members multiplied and diversified by the end of 1981 as ethnic groups from the Caribbean coast and peasants from the north joined the struggle against the Nicaraguan government. These mainly ethnic minority and indigenous populations had long been marginalized and sought more self-determination and/or autonomy from the government. However, the new Sandinista government regime responded to their demands with force and compulsory relocations, which prompted these marginalized populations to join the Contras.
Contra forces established themselves in bases along the Nicaraguan border in Honduras and Costa Rica. Different Contra forces operated in various areas within Nicaragua, for example, the Nicaraguan Coast Indian Unity and the United Nicaraguan Opposition operated in the northwest whilst the Opposition Block of the South was in the southeast.
The Contras had multiple leaders including Adolfo Calero and Enrique Bermudez, who served as Commander in Chief and Chief of Military Affairs for the FDN. Troop estimates for the Contras varied and seemed to reach a peak in the mid-1980s. While it was stated that the Contras had approximately 15 000 troops by the mid-1980s, the FDN claimed to have 18 000 armed troops alone and 10 000 of these were reportedly within Nicaragua. However, in 1990, 22 373 troops from the Contras were demobilized.
The Government of the United States was a vital supporter to the Contras because it considered the closeness of the Nicaraguan government to the communist regimes of Cuba and the Soviet Union as a threat to the entire US and Caribbean region. Therefore, the US supplied the FDN specifically with weapons, training facilities in Florida, military advisors for training as well as military, financial and non-lethal aid. The FDN was also permitted to access and use territory within Honduras whilst Saudi Arabia and Taiwan both sent the FDN military aid.
