The US government has launched an investigation into labor and human rights abuses in Nicaragua, affecting relations with a country with which it has a free trade agreement amid growing concerns about the increasingly authoritarian government of President Daniel Ortega.
The investigation, which will be conducted by the Office of the United States Trade Representative, is expected to last a year.
“Numerous reports suggest that the Nicaraguan government is engaging in repressive acts that harm its own workers and the Nicaraguan people, undermine fair competition, and destabilize our region,” U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in a statement.
The investigation, authorized under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, will examine not only the allegations of abuse, but also the extent to which they affect trade with the United States. Only until then will actions be taken accordingly, if any.
The trade representative, in her statement, cited credible reports from various activist groups against the Ortega government, including political arrests, forced labor, human trafficking, and repression of freedom of association and collective bargaining.
“Such actions exacerbate labor exploitation and diminish economic growth and business opportunities,” the agency said, adding that the decision to open the investigation is one of several measures taken on Tuesday to mark International Human Rights Day.
Nicaraguan Vice President and government spokesperson Rosario Murillo did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
In May, the US government imposed Section 301 tariffs on several Chinese products, including electric vehicles, advanced batteries, solar cells, steel and aluminum. Those tariffs largely reflected the United States’ conclusion that China was unfairly subsidizing those industries.
“For years, the Chinese government has poured state money into Chinese companies,” President Joe Biden said of those tariffs. “It’s not competition, it’s cheating.”
In the case of Nicaragua, any sanctions would be complicated because the country is part of the Central American Free Trade Agreement.
Of the five members of the trade pact, Nicaragua is one of the only two that register a trade surplus with the United States, which in 2022 was approximately $3 billion, almost 20% of its gross domestic product.
Ortega proposed a constitutional reform last month that would officially make him and his wife, Vice President Murillo, “co-presidents” of the Central American nation and extend the presidential term from five to six years.
The proposals come amid allegations of continued repression by the Ortega government that has resulted in the mass incarceration and forced exile of adversaries, including religious leaders and journalists.
Since 2018, the government has closed more than 5,000 organizations, mostly religious, and many have been forced to flee the country.
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