Three days after making a public complaint about the alleged aggression of a drunken senior police chief against the political prisoner Ana Margarita Vijil, supposedly occurred in her cell at dawn on December 19, her mother Josefina Gurdián, known as Pinita, was able to see her and verify that this attack did not occur, according to her daughter’s account. However, he learned that Ana Margarita was interrogated and filmed by the authorities in jail, the same day of the complaint.
“She was interrogated and filmed without explaining the facts, showing her photos from the press conference (of the public complaint). This caused a great commotion in her, since the last information she had about my state of health was 45 days ago, when I was in a serious condition, intubated and on a ventilator. For all this, she considers that this information was apparently aimed at generating anguish and uncertainty for the family, ”Gurdián explained through a video posted on his Facebook account.
He explained that on the afternoon of this Sunday, January 2, he was able to meet with his daughter, who is still in isolation, has lost even more weight and is interrogated daily. “These last few days have been an ordeal for our family. The possibility that this information (aggression) was true caused great anguish both to us and to all the good people in our country, ”said Gurdián, who suffers from cancer and recently underwent two surgeries.
Vijil’s family took advantage of the transmission of the video to thank national and international human rights organizations, social and political organizations, and journalists for the support they gave to the complaint about the alleged attack that occurred on December 19.
“We thank God that the information, which we do not know with what intentions was transmitted to us, has not occurred and we hope that it will never occur against any of the persons deprived of liberty in any of the prisons and police units throughout the country”, the mother reiterated.
Gurdián did not elaborate on what his daughter was asked during the interrogation that was recorded. It is also not known if they will publish it in the official media, as some photos of the relatives of political prisoners who came to see them this weekend have already circulated.
Reporting is a right
Guardián pointed out that the family decided to make the complaint public due to the lack of response from the State because the first action they took was to go privately to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to request information from the State; however, there was no response. Therefore, the most viable option was to make it public.
“The only viable option was to make a public complaint asking for answers, considering that: We live in a context of deprivation of liberty and criminalization that has been characterized by its arbitrariness (…) Public complaint is a right that, in a context such as that of Nicaragua, we must continue to protect. Neither family members, nor national and international organizations that defend human rights, nor journalists, nor citizens, can we remain silent, ”he said.
Vijil served 200 days of imprisonment on Thursday, December 30. Her family has seen her only four times during this time, and the last visit prior to the one that occurred this Sunday was on November 15. They had not heard from her for more than 45 days.
? LAST MINUTE | María Josefina Guardián (Pinita) updates her daughter’s situation, @anavijil political prey in El Chipote. WE DEMAND IMMEDIATE FREEDOM FOR HER AND ALL PERSONS, POLITICAL PRISONERS.
Watch video?https://t.co/muiFZaFGRr pic.twitter.com/jAH9kPwIye– Cenidh (@cenidh) January 3, 2022
They demand the release of prisoners
The family members also took the opportunity to demand that the isolation in which the four political prisoners find themselves: Ana Margarita Vijil, Tamara Dávila, Suyén Barahona and Dora María Téllez. Likewise, that they allow the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to make an exhaustive assessment of the physical and emotional state of all political prisoners.
They also asked national and international organizations to remain vigilant in the face of the situation of the 170 political prisoners in prisons controlled by the Daniel Ortega regime, as they are arbitrarily detained and continue to suffer different types of torture.
“Ana Margarita asked us to thank them, she told us that she feels the solidarity of so many people, of all of you. May your love, your affection, your prayers, your solidarity go through the bars and give you a lot of energy and optimism. She asks me to put their hands together tightly and give them a kiss, that at that moment they will be with her, with dignity and unity ”, concluded Gurdián.
