Dictatorial paranoia Nicaragua | 13 October 2022

Nicaragua: Christians sent into exile amid escalation in repression

The government harassment of bishops, priests, nuns and seminarists is taking many forms and forcing many of them into exile.

 

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The following recent incidents show how government harassment is forcing church leaders to leave the country:
  • 7 September 2022: Divergentes reported that four Catholic priests and a seminary student have left the country following severe harassment through phone-calls, threats and close surveillance.
  • 13 September 2022: Despacho 505 reported that Roman Catholic Priest Juan de Dios García of the Santo Cristo de Esquipulas church in Managua had been refused entry back into Nicaragua after spending 2 months abroad with relatives in the USA. The reason is that, on 19 May 2022, he had given Bishop Alvarez of Managua refuge in the church building to avoid police arrest.
  • 16 September 2022: According to Gaudium Press, in the last months at least 50 priests from Nicaragua have applied for asylum in Honduras and Costa Rica after experiencing harassment from agents.
  • 22 September 2022: The Catholic World Report stated that the Sisters of the Cross (founded in Mexico) have given up their work in Matagalpa and have returned to Mexico. The nuns served in the Diocese of Matagalpa where Rolando Álvarez is under house arrest. Sources said their departure was due to the constant pressure exerted by government officials demanding information on the origin of each and every donation.
World Watch Research analyst Rossana Ramirez comments: “It is no surprise that Catholic Christians are being specifically targeted by Daniel Ortega’s regime due to their faith-based opposition to its authoritarian policies and abuse of human rights. In a speech held on 28 September 2022 at a police function, President Ortega referred to the Catholic church as ‘the perfect dictatorship’, accusing Catholic leaders of speaking about democracy when they did not practice it themselves (Gaudium Press, 30 September 2022).”

Rossana Ramirez continues: “It is of great concern that the harassment of bishops, priests, nuns and seminarists is taking many forms and forcing many of them into exile. In addition, even the EU Ambassador has been declared a ‘persona non grata’ after demanding the release of political prisoners at a recent UN General Assembly. She left the country on 1 October (Reuters, 1 October 2022).”

Rossana Ramirez adds: “Adding to the government’s political heavy-handedness, the public celebration of three religious festivals was officially cancelled for alleged security reasons. This ban affected St Jerome’s Day and Archangel St. Michael’s Day for the Catholic community (GNT News, 20 September 2022 and the National Bible Day for the Protestant community (Article 66, 21 September 2022). A massive police presence ensured that all congregations held their celebrations within the walls of their churches. This is a further example of the increasing levels of government repression.”
 

 

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