'I Consider Myself a Poet'.(Daniel Saavedra Ortega)(Interview)

On the campaign trail Daniel Ortega recently spoke with NEWSWEEK's Alan Zarembo in Managua. Excerpts:

On whether he has changed:

In 1990 we held new elections--which were not free because the United States blackmailed the people--but we recognized the result and handed over power... We have not renounced our ideals, our dreams. We keep fighting for a just and free world. We keep defending the socialist ideals, not in a dogmatic way, but in line with the new reality. The recent attacks from U.S. officials are completely outside the context of reality. It is like us telling the Americans that in order to prove you are democrats and respect sovereignty, you have to return the territory that you took from Mexico.

On the United States:

The philosophy of power in the United States still has not changed. They maintain a hegemonic position. For example, refusing to sign the Kyoto accords, which are elemental for the survival of the planet... I don't harbor any resentment or hatred against the United States. We have always insisted that we want to look for mutual understanding.

On free-market economics:

It is necessary to respect the market. But we don't agree with the concept of trying to totally remove the state. The state should not have the role it had in the 1980s in Nicaragua. But it should be used to stimulate the economy in a direction that suits the ...