This Tuesday, May 9, 222 former political prisoners complete three months since they were exiled from Nicaragua to the United States by order of the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo.
On February 9, 2023, most of those kidnapped by the Nicaraguan dictatorship were taken from the cells of the Directorate of Judicial Assistance, in Managua, as well as from the different prisons in the country, to be taken to the Air Force and be put on a plane to the North American country.
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On this date, which became historic for the Nicaraguan opposition, the lawyer and former politician Roger Reyes He recalled, through his Twitter account, that “on a day like today (…) together with a group of 222 former prisoners, we were being expelled from our own country, unconstitutionally.”
He pointed out that along with his banishment, the Ortega justice stripped all political hostages of their nationality and constitutional rights, “physically separating us from our family —but— soon we will be together.”
For his part, the political exile Irving Larios said to Article 66 that he still remembers the circumstances in which he and the other 221 former political prisoners undertook “the flight to freedom.”
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“Many of us came sick and with health deficiencies, as well as psychological problems. They sent us only with the clothes we were wearing at the time, but that did not intimidate us, because we have all felt ready to accept this new reality, without a doubt some more than others, since some colleagues had a more favorable situation». said the also member of the Articulation of Social Movements (AMS).
On the other hand, he said that of the total number of political ex-residents, many do not have the financial resources like those of other exiled opponents. “Many do not have family or a close friendship, so North American NGOs have provided us with some basic conditions and immediate resources such as health care, clothing, food, and accommodation.”
He also indicated that most of the political exiles “have advanced work permits and many of us are waiting for the Government of Spain and seven other governments that promised to give us nationality to do so as soon as possible.”
Difficulty reuniting with family
While for the former politician Samantha Jirón these three months of exile have been many challenges for all the opponents kidnapped by the Ortega dictatorship, because she assures that “every human being who has lived the experience that we live in a prison and subsequent exile and forced exile, we need time to recover.
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He also considers that all the political exiles still have not recovered from the traumas that the confinement carried out by the Ortega dictatorship left them. “Not all of us have been able to meet with our families, in fact, of the group of 222 there have been few who have had family reunification.”
«In my case, I have not been able to meet my relatives again, since they are exiled in Costa Rica and I do not know when I will be able to see them again. It really is very difficult because we can ask our family with a parole, but we have to meet the requirements that are asked of other people, “he stressed.
Among the requirements that Jirón detailed is the search for a sponsor, which, as he explains, has been complicated for the majority of the group of 222, because he asserts that it has been difficult to find someone to cover people economically, “in addition to the fact that this country It is very bureaucratic with the procedures, although we have had the happiness that they are accelerated, but we have a greater challenge to apply for better jobs, because we have problems with the language.
Despite having suffered exile, the majority of former political prisoners have affirmed that they continue to demand the freedom of Nicaragua to achieve the removal of the Ortega y Murillo regime that does not cease its wave of repression against Nicaraguans.
