Content note: Typed training-manual page advising the killing of named categories of officials ('neutralize') for propaganda effect, and framing a killing as the victim's and the regime's fault. This object is shown as it was published. Why
'Psychological Operations in Guerrilla Warfare' (CIA Contra training manual, Nicaragua, p. 33, 1980s)
A typed page from a guerrilla psychological-operations manual for Contra fighters, in the CIA's English translation. It advises 'neutralizing' selected judges, police and security officials before the assembled population, and a footnote records that the English lesson plans said 'remove'. The paragraph above it tells trainees to present a killing as the fault of the victim and of the Sandinista government, in terms of 'freedom', 'justice' and 'Christian feelings'.
- Date
- October 18, 1985
- Period
- Cold War
- Made by
- U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (manual for Nicaraguan Contra fighters, 'Freedom Commandos')
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Document
- Issuer type
- Intelligence
- Regime
- Reagan Administration
- Leader
- Ronald Reagan
- Audience
- Own forces
- Event
- Contra War
- Source
- Impersonated Source falsified: fake personas, outlets or documents
- Source
- CIA Reading Room (document C02194646), mirror at Internet Archive, retrieved October 2, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work; CIA record released 2023/12/27)
U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, CIA Reading Room document C02194646, via the Internet Archive.
Text on the object
Approved for Release: 2023/12/27 C02194646 fired was one that was recovered in combat against the Sandinista regime. - Make the population see that if the Sandinista regime had ended its repression, with the corruption sponsored by foreign powers, etc., the freedom commandos would not have had to take up arms to cut down the lives of their Nicaraguan brothers, which hurts our Christian feelings. If the informant had not tried to escape, he would be enjoying life together with the rest of the population, because he would not have tried to inform to the enemy. This death would have been avoided if justice and freedom existed in Nicaragua, and this is exactly the objective of the democratic guerrilla. 5. Selective Use of Violence for Propaganda Effects We could neutralize[2] carefully selected and planned-for targets, such as court judges, cattle judges [jueces de mesta], police or state security officers, CDS chiefs, etc. For purposes of the psychological effect, it is necessary to take extreme precautions, and it is essential to gather the affected population together to attend, take part in the act, and formulate accusations against the oppressor. The target or person must be selected on the basis of the following: - The spontaneous hostility which the majority of the population may feel against the target. [footnote 2] The word neutralize was inserted during the translation process. The English language lesson plans used the word remove. 33 Approved for Release: 2023/12/27 C02194646
English translation of a Spanish-language manual, as printed in the CIA release. Spelling and punctuation as typed ('inform to the enemy'). The superscript footnote mark is shown as [2].
