2021 was the most risky year to protect human rights in Nicaragua, reported this Friday the non-governmental Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (Cenidh), which has denounced the local government for the “theft” of its headquarters.
“The year 2021 was one of the most difficult in the work of protecting human rights. From Cenidh we can assure that there were more risks than in previous years ”, the NGO highlighted in a report.
According to the organization, the risks were greater this year “due to the destruction and total closure of all spaces for the formal complaint of human rights, through the resources established by law.”
“We Nicaraguans are left without protection in our own country, as if it were a large prison, where only terror and oppression reign”Said the non-governmental organization.
“Systematic persecution” of the regime
Like Cenidh, the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (Acnud) and Amnesty International (AI) have accused the president of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega, of violating human rights.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) endorsed a report presented last November by 15 Nicaraguan humanitarian organizations in which it was stated that in the country “crimes against humanity are committed within the framework of State terrorism and a Police State of Exception ”.
2021 “was a year of systematic persecution and imprisonment of political, social, business, peasant, university leaders, human rights defenders, journalists, including seven opponents and presidential candidates. A year of electoral farce. A year in which the destruction of the institutionality ”, underlined the Cenidh.
Data endorsed by the IACHR indicates that in Nicaragua there are at least 160 political prisoners, including more than 40 captured in the context of the recent general elections, among these seven aspiring candidates for the presidency by the opposition, in a process in which Ortega got another reelection.
Almost a thousand attentions
In its report on 2021, Cenidh indicated that this year it provided 951 services related to human rights violations, 696 follow-ups of cases, 255 new complaints, and 15 legal defenses.
It also carried out 25 precautionary measures in force, another four in process, and 16 follow-ups on petitions made in previous years, in addition to representing six provisional measures and two cases before the IACHR.
The Cenidh is chaired by the lawyer and activist Vilma Núñez, winner of the Human Rights Award 2021 in the international category, awarded by the Spanish Association for Human Rights (APDHE).
At this key moment in Nicaraguan history, accessing reliable information is more important than ever. That is why, at CONFIDENTIAL, we have kept our news coverage free and free for all, without paywalls. This commitment to citizens would not be possible without the support of our readers. Therefore, we invite you to support our work by joining our Membership Program or by making a donation. By becoming a member, you will receive exclusive products such as eBooks, specialized newsletters and historical digital archives. As a donor, we will send you an annual report on how we invest your financial contribution. Thank you, in advance, for being part of this collective effort to inform our entire community.
