
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, March 24, 1990                   TAG: 9003242543
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS                                LENGTH: Medium

NICARUAUAN REBELS AGREE TO DISBAND

The Contra rebels agreed Friday to begin immediate disbanding of their forces in Honduras and said they would be home in Nicaragua by April 20, five days before a new civilian government is to take office.

"The Nicaraguan Resistance begins its return to Nicaragua today," rebel negotiator Oscar Sovalbarro, head of Contra psychological operations, told a news conference. "The process will culminate on April 20 with the goal of reincorporating its members into the civilian society."

The announcement came after seven hours of talks with Cardinal Miguel Obando y Bravo, the archbishop of Managua, and representatives of President-elect Violeta Barrios de Chamorro.

It said the 4,000 guerrillas inside Nicaragua would move into security zones supervised by Obando y Bravo and the United Nations. The rebels called for an immediate cease-fire between the Sandinista armed forces and the Contras inside Nicaragua to be supervised by the United Nations and Obando y Bravo.

Chamorro's delegation to the talks agreed that the new administration would provide pensions to Contra widows and orphans and to wounded rebel veterans in "recognition of their patriotic labors." No details were immediately available.

The Chamorro administration also promised to "assure the rehabilitation and social readaptation" of those affected by the war and to seek humanitarian and medical aid for the duration of the demobilization.

President Daniel Ortega met Obando y Bravo at the airport when he returned to Managua Friday night and said he fully supported the accord.

"I am going to give instructions immediately to the Foreign Ministry and the Defense Ministry to take steps to apply the letter of this accord," he told a news conference.

Ortega had said the Contras must disband for there to be a peaceful transition of power.

The Chamorro delegation also agreed to set up a commission including representatives of the new government and of the Contras to monitor demobilization. The commission and humanitarian aid for the rebels and their families were conditions the Contras set for demobilization at the outset of Friday's talks.

by CNB