Idania Fernandez
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Idania de Los Angeles Fernandez Ramirez (July 23, 1952 – April 16, 1979) was a Nicaraguan revolutionary in the
Sandinista The Sandinista National Liberation Front ( es, Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, FSLN) is a Socialism, socialist political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas () in both English and Spanish. The party is named after ...
Front.


Childhood and early education

The second out of five children, Idania de Los Angeles Fernández Ramírez spent her early years in
León, Nicaragua León () is the second largest city in Nicaragua, after Managua. Founded by the Spanish as Santiago de los Caballeros de León, it is the capital and largest city of León Department. , the municipality of León has an estimated population of 2 ...
. At the age of three, her family moved to the neighbourhood of Subtiava on the outskirts of León. She lived in
Managua ) , settlement_type = Capital city , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Nicara ...
between the ages of six and ten until her family moved to the town of
Jinotega Jinotega () (derived from Náhuatl: ''Xiotenko'' ‘place next to the jiñocuajo trees’) is the capital city of the Department of Jinotega in north-central Nicaragua. The city is located in a long valley surrounded by the cool climate and Da ...
in 1962. Three years later, her family returned to Managua, where Idania finished elementary and high school between the years 1965 and 1972 at the French School of the Sacred Heart, the same institution attended by now ex-President
Violeta Chamorro Violeta Barrios Torres de Chamorro (; 18 October 1929) is a Nicaraguan politician who served as President of Nicaragua from 1990 to 1997. She was the first and, as of 2022, only woman to hold the position of president of Nicaragua. Born into ...
.


From Catholic to revolutionary

Idania developed organizational and leadership skills as a member of the group "Las Metanoias" during her senior year in high school. The group took spiritual retreat trips to Hacienda El Tepeyac near
Mombacho Mombacho is a stratovolcano in Nicaragua, near the city of Granada. It is high. The Mombacho Volcano Nature Reserve is one of 78 protected areas of Nicaragua. Mombacho’s last eruption occurred in 1570. There is no historical knowledge of earl ...
Volcano and
Lake Nicaragua Lake Nicaragua or Cocibolca or Granada ( es, Lago de Nicaragua, , or ) is a freshwater lake in Nicaragua. Of tectonic origin and with an area of , it is the largest lake in Central America, the 19th largest lake in the world (by area) and the ...
for group study of
liberation theology Liberation theology is a Christian theological approach emphasizing the liberation of the oppressed. In certain contexts, it engages socio-economic analyses, with "social concern for the poor and political liberation for oppressed peoples". In ...
. Idania became an activist, representing her school in various organizations that demanded the release of political prisoners in 1971–1972. In 1973, her family moved to
Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...
and she started her college education in Economics at the
University of Panama The University of Panama ( es, Universidad de Panamá) was founded on October 7, 1935. Initially, it had 175 students learning education, commerce, natural sciences, pharmacy, pre-engineering or law. , it had 74,059 students distributed in 228 b ...
. She resumed her activism, joining the Solidarity Committees in support of the Sandinista Liberation Front prisoners. In 1974, she married David Miranda, a Panamanian-Nicaraguan student of economics. In August 1975, she gave birth to her daughter, who she named Claudia for Claudia Chamorro, another Sandinista who would be killed in action a year later.


Reunion with the Sandinista leadership

Idania first met the
Sandinistas The Sandinista National Liberation Front ( es, Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, FSLN) is a socialist political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas () in both English and Spanish. The party is named after Augusto Cé ...
in 1974 in
Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...
, helping them with logistics, including accommodations and supplies. Idania was considered a participant in the raid at the National Government Palace in 1 which took hostages and handled to the release of several Sandinistas in captivity. Ultimately,
Dora María Téllez Dora María Téllez Argüello (born 1955) is a Nicaraguan historian known for her involvement in the Nicaraguan Revolution. As a young university medical student in León in the 1970s, Téllez was recruited by the Sandinista National Liberation ...
was chosen, the only woman in the operation, which was named after
Rigoberto López Pérez Rigoberto López Pérez (May 13, 1929 – September 21, 1956) was a Nicaraguan poet, artist and composer. He assassinated Anastasio Somoza García, the longtime dictator of Nicaragua. On September 21, 1981, 25 years after his death, the Sandinista ...
.


Military training

In 1978, following the insurrection in
Monimbo ''Monimbo'' is the 1983 follow-up novel to the 1980 Arnaud De Borchgrave- Robert Moss spy thriller '' The Spike''. Plot Fidel Castro attends a conference in Monimbo, Nicaragua. It begins with the kidnapping of a U.S. Senator in Puerto Rico by th ...
(a ''barrio'' in
Masaya Masaya () is the capital city of Masaya Department in Nicaragua. It is situated approximately 14 km west of Granada and 31 km southeast of Managua. It is located just east of the Masaya Volcano, an active volcano from which the cit ...
), Idania joined the ranks of the
FSLN The Sandinista National Liberation Front ( es, Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, FSLN) is a socialist political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas () in both English and Spanish. The party is named after Augusto Cé ...
Command in Panama and Costa Rica, where she frequently met with members of the "Dirección Nacional" (National FSLN Directorate). She trained in Cuba in the middle of 1978.


Wounded in the southern front

Between 1975 and 1978, Idania made trips to Nicaragua and
Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
on clandestine missions, including one trip to the Northern Front and different operatives. In September 1978, she wounded her left hand in combat near the southern border of Nicaragua. She was taken to a Costa Rican hospital near the border. Fearing for her security at the hospital,
Sergio Ramírez Sergio Ramírez Mercado (; born 5 August 1942 in Masatepe, Nicaragua) is a Nicaraguan writer and intellectual who was a key figure in 1979 revolution, served in the leftist Government Junta of National Reconstruction and as vice president of t ...
's wife picked her up and took her to a Sandinista makeshift hospital in Nicaragua near the border. Upon her return to Panama, the Panamanian military had assigned Secret Service security personnel to high-ranking or identifiable Sandinistas including Idania. She could no longer use her real name or passport on her missions to Nicaragua, or visit public places in Panama without an escort. She was required to carry a high-calibre Magnum pistol in her purse at all times. After a number of spontaneous uprisings in Monimbo, Matagalpa, Estelí, and other cities that saw the Sandinistas react to rather than control these expressions of discontent, a major shift in Sandinista strategy was developed. In order to take the lead in the Insurrection, two major Insurrectional Commands were organized; the Frente Interno in
Managua ) , settlement_type = Capital city , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Nicara ...
and the Western Command in the city of León. Idania was assigned to the newly formed Western Insurrectional Command, which required experience with the communities and base organizations ("trabajo de barrios"), worker unions, students, and religious groups and organizing the neighbourhoods for the final offensive.


Plans for a final insurrection and a new government junta

In February 1979,
Omar Torrijos Omar Efraín Torrijos Herrera (February 13, 1929 – July 31, 1981) was the Commander of the Panamanian National Guard and military leader of Panama from 1968 to his death in 1981. Torrijos was never officially the president of Panama, ...
, head of the Panamanian government, invited the Grupo de
Los Doce ''El Grupo de los Doce'', or Group of Twelve, were a dozen members of the Nicaraguan establishment whose support for the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) against President Anastasio Somoza Debayle played a pivotal role in the acceptance ...
, prominent Nicaraguan businessmen backing up the Sandinistas, for talks in Panama. By this time, arms shipments from Venezuela and Cuba were under way. Dr. Joaquín Cuadra, a member of
Los Doce ''El Grupo de los Doce'', or Group of Twelve, were a dozen members of the Nicaraguan establishment whose support for the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) against President Anastasio Somoza Debayle played a pivotal role in the acceptance ...
and whose son
Joaquín Cuadra Joaquín Cuadra Lacayo, (Managua, April 11, 1951) a scion of Nicaragua's elite, joined the rebel Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) in late 1972. After their victory in 1979, he became army chief of staff. Biography Cuadra studied at ...
, leader of the Frente Interno Sandinista Command, was in Nicaragua, invited Idania and Oscar Perez Cassar for the talks and dinner. Idania and Oscar were also members of the Frente Interno, and scheduled to go back to Nicaragua via Honduras, to assume the leadership of the Western Regional Command for the final Insurrection.
Sergio Ramírez Sergio Ramírez Mercado (; born 5 August 1942 in Masatepe, Nicaragua) is a Nicaraguan writer and intellectual who was a key figure in 1979 revolution, served in the leftist Government Junta of National Reconstruction and as vice president of t ...
, also a member of
Los Doce ''El Grupo de los Doce'', or Group of Twelve, were a dozen members of the Nicaraguan establishment whose support for the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) against President Anastasio Somoza Debayle played a pivotal role in the acceptance ...
and a member of the upcoming Government Junta, relates that Idania attended with her hand still bandaged from surgery after her wounds in September. In March 1979, Idania went back to Nicaragua to resume her post in the Western Regional Command, and was prepared to stay indefinitely until victory or death, as a member of the ill-fated Insurrectional Command "
Rigoberto López Pérez Rigoberto López Pérez (May 13, 1929 – September 21, 1956) was a Nicaraguan poet, artist and composer. He assassinated Anastasio Somoza García, the longtime dictator of Nicaragua. On September 21, 1981, 25 years after his death, the Sandinista ...
" headed by
Dora María Téllez Dora María Téllez Argüello (born 1955) is a Nicaraguan historian known for her involvement in the Nicaraguan Revolution. As a young university medical student in León in the 1970s, Téllez was recruited by the Sandinista National Liberation ...
. The Sandinistas sought to finish the Somozas' regime.


The Swan Over the Burning Coals

Sergio Ramírez Sergio Ramírez Mercado (; born 5 August 1942 in Masatepe, Nicaragua) is a Nicaraguan writer and intellectual who was a key figure in 1979 revolution, served in the leftist Government Junta of National Reconstruction and as vice president of t ...
chose "The swan over the burning coals" for the title of the chapter in his book "''Adios Muchachos''" dedicated to the memory of the events of the day that shook the entire city of León and the rest of the country. On April 16, 1979, the Sandinista war was escalating quickly, with battles taking place in more than twenty cities in Nicaragua. Most of the leaders of the Revolutionary Government were in Costa Rican or Panamanian safe houses, their tasks were to provide military strategy, negotiate with foreign governments, and develop a plan for the new Nicaraguan Government Junta. All combat operations were organized and led by five separate regional commands throughout the country. The most important ones were the Western Command, based in the City of León, and the Frente Interno, based in Managua. They were considered critical for a fast victory. On that day, the members of the Western Regional Command integrated by Oscar Pérez Cassar, Idania Fernandez, Araceli Pérez Darias, Edgard Lang Sacasa, Roger Deshon Argüello and Carlos Manuel Jarquin were in session in a safe house in the suburbs of León. The National Guard was attacking the City of
Estelí Estelí (), officially Villa de San Antonio de Pavia de Estelí is a city and municipality within the Estelí department. It is the 3rd largest city in Nicaragua due to the high urbanization of its municipality, at 83%, with an urban population of ...
, near the mountains and they were coordinating efforts to help them. An informant and eighty members of the
National Guard National Guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. Nat ...
, in jeeps and tanks, surrounded the block and stormed into the house. The Sandinistas were unable to escape or to grab their weapons. Morales was able to get into a swimming pool and passed herself off as a resident of the house and ended up as the only survivor. The informant positively identified the men, but he said he did not know the women. Afterwards, all of the men were executed on the spot, while Idania and Darias were arrested, taken to the Fortin of Acosasco, tortured, and murdered.


The aftermath

Thousands attended the funerals of Idania and Darias. The Somoza government refused to return the remains of Darias (a Mexican national) to her family. Idania's parents and two youngest sisters were living in Dallas, Texas, and contacted the ''Dallas Morning News''. The paper dedicated a full-page article on the events in the Sunday edition. Soon after in the city of León, guerilla fighters led by
Dora María Téllez Dora María Téllez Argüello (born 1955) is a Nicaraguan historian known for her involvement in the Nicaraguan Revolution. As a young university medical student in León in the 1970s, Téllez was recruited by the Sandinista National Liberation ...
, Idania's comrade, increased their operational tempo as a result of public outrage over the deaths. In June, victory over the Somoza forces in León was complete, followed by the fall of the capital Managua two weeks later, bringing the Somoza regime to an end.


Legacy

"I leave you an example of life, mine," wrote Idania to her daughter in her farewell letters. Reprinted in Margaret Randall's book ''Todas Estamos Despiertas''. /sup> and many columnists' and editorial pages in Nicaragua since her death.
Ernesto Cardenal Ernesto Cardenal Martínez (20 January 1925 – 1 March 2020) was a Nicaraguan Catholic priest, poet, and politician. He was a liberation theologian and the founder of the primitivist art community in the Solentiname Islands, where he lived for m ...
, Sergio Ramirez and other dissidents of the Sandinistas often quote Idania's writings and ideals. After her death, Idania's reputation grew. In 1984, at the peak of the
Contra Contra may refer to: Places * Contra, Virginia * Contra Costa Canal, an aqueduct in the U.S. state of California * Contra Costa County, California * Tenero-Contra, a municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland ...
war, one of the largest battalions of the
Sandinista Popular Army The Sandinista Popular Army (SPA) (or People's Army; , EPS) was the military forces established in 1979 by the new Sandinista government of Nicaragua to replace the Nicaraguan National Guard, following the overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle. I ...
(Ejército Popular Sandinista), dispatched to the Northern Front to fight the Contras, was named after her. There are nurseries and police stations named for her but there are no monuments or statues for her in Nicaragua.


References


External links


Ref. ''Idania Fernandez Ramirez'', private collection, Painting by American feminist painter Erin Currier
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fernandez, Idania 1952 births 1979 deaths Latin Americanists Members of the Sandinista National Liberation Front Nicaraguan revolutionaries People of the Nicaraguan Revolution Women in war in Central America Women in war 1945–1999 Guerrillas killed in action Female guerrillas