Ralph Gonsalves visiting Bluefields, Nicaragua, July 18, 2022    | Photo: Twitter/ @KawsachunNews

Managua, July 20 (RHC)-- During a special ceremony in honor of the 43rd anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution, Nicaragua's President Ortega decorated the Prime Minister of Saint Vincent & the Grenadines Ralph Gonsalves with the Order of Cesar Augusto Sandino.

"Ralph Gonsalves is a tireless anti-imperialist fighter, who has dedicated his life to peace, integration, prosperity, and happiness in our Latin America," Nicaraguan Vice President Rosario Murillo noted.

"Gonsalves has led the anti-colonial struggle of the Caribbean peoples, firmly demanding that the colonial states make fair reparations for the genocide of Indigenous peoples and the consequences of slavery in the countries of the Caribbean Community."

At the time of accepting the Cesar Augusto Sandino order, the Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines highlighted the good relations between his country and Nicaragua and urged Washington to change his attitude towards this Central American country.

"I call on the United States, a country of great achievements, to approach the Nicaraguan government and people with friendship.  Is that so difficult?" Gonsalves said.

He reiterated that his country subscribes to principles of international coexistence such as the defense of sovereignty, independence, and non-interference, which allow us to "walk with all the peoples of the world in friendship and without subordination."

On July 19, 1979, the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) overthrown the U.S.-backed dictatorship that Anastasio Somoza led for decades.  On this week, students, workers, and farmers remember that glorious day through caravans and other public events.