§ Mr. Deakinsasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment Her Majesty's Government have made of the effect on the fairness of the elections in Nicaragua of the campaign by the Contra insurgents to disrupt polling.
§ Mr. RentonWe received no reports that the Contra insurgents disrupted polling. However, as my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh, Pentlands (Mr. Rifkind) told the hon. Member on 16 April, physical harrassment by the Sandinistas led the main opposition parties to withdraw from the elections. In those circumstances, there was no possibility of a genuinely free and fair contest.