Malnutrition, skin diseases, changes in blood pressure and asthma are the main health problems suffered by political prisoners Jose Antonio Peraza, Maria Esperanza Sanchez Y Pedro Vasquez; three cases that illustrate the physical and mental exhaustion to which the regime subjects more than 180 prisoners of conscience, depriving them of timely and specialized medical attention, while applying a policy of secrecy that includes not informing relatives when they become ill.
“The lack of timely medical care has led, on the one hand, to an increase in hospitalization cases in the population of prisoners and political prisoners, as well as the appearance and worsening of chronic diseases,” warned the Mechanism for the Recognition of Political Prisoners. , in their May report.
According to the Mechanism, at least 44 political prisoners suffer from illnesses associated with heart and circulatory system ailments. “Some have suffered heart attacks or pre-heart attacks and are in a high-risk condition,” they warn.
Before María Esperanza Sánchez, a political prisoner and opponent of the Ortega regime, was confined to La Esperanza prison, in Tipitapa, with a sentence of ten years, she only suffered from asthma, which she controlled with routine medication. Two and a half years after her confinement, her health has deteriorated markedly, with blood pressure, circulation and heart problems.
Two months ago, she experienced an asthma crisis that knocked her down for about 20 days in the prison’s medical post, under observation and channeling, confided a relative, who admitted speaking with CONFIDENTIAL under anonymity to avoid retaliation.
A week after overcoming asthma, her blood pressure dropped, which implies the assistance of another person due to the risk of fainting or dizziness, Sánchez’s relative continued. “She has had thousands of complications, from her stomach, her colon, her asthma, her circulation, her blood pressure, her heart; she has become complicated and her health has deteriorated completely, ”she pointed out.
But family members not only have to live with restricted medical attention, but also with the uncertainty of not knowing about their relatives when they get sick because there is no communication between the prison and them. It is through third parties that they find out about the real health situation of the prisoner of conscience; This is what happened with Sánchez. The source pointed out that her daughters went to the prison to verify her condition, but they did not let her see her.
“It is irresponsible” on the part of the authorities because the relatives have rights, the relative claims.
Skin diseases and malnutrition
The political scientist and member of the Political Council of the Blue and White National Unity (UNAB), José Antonio Peraza —sentenced to ten years in prison— is malnourished, with skin problems and a recurrent kidney infection, reports a source close to the family. Almost a year after his arrest —on July 26, 2021—, the man who entered prison without any ailment or disease, has multiple health problems.
The source assures that the food they provide him in prison does not guarantee enough nutrients for his body and the conditions are “unhealthy”. He does not receive the required medical attention and the medicines are not appropriate, he warns. That is why the conditions persist for months, as has happened with dermatological diseases. Malnutrition has taken its toll on her body. “She goes to bed with a burning sensation in her stomach from hunger,” says the source close to the family.
Peraza is one of the 17 people who report having some type of skin problem. “All of them have acquired it due to the unsanitary conditions in prison, which causes fungal infections and other more severe ones such as scabies,” warns the Mechanism.
Thinness is a characteristic of all prisoners of conscience held in El Chipote. This is how political prisoner Pedro Vásquez is – sentenced to seven years in prison – who has also plunged into “a state of impressive depression,” says a relative, who requested anonymity for security reasons. Like the rest of the political prisoners, the prison sees them in the body. In his case, the active, energetic man who worked in the fields has become a person with recurring tremors in his hands, instability in his blood pressure and colon problems that cause inflammation; “He says that he has felt very bad.”
“Everything has come from there, from being locked up, from being in prison unjustly, to how everyone is,” says the source concerned about the weakened health of Vásquez, 60 years old. According to the Mechanism, at least 14 people reported metabolic health problems that require specialized care and treatment, such as anemia, diabetes, and thyroid problems.
IACHR grants precautionary measures to four political prisoners
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) granted last June 20 precautionary measures for three political prisoners and their families: José Antonio Peraza, Róger Abel Reyes and Irving Larios Sánchez, and this June 22 for a fourth prisoner of conscience and his family, José Alejandro Quintanilla Hernández —known as Alex Hernández—, considering that they are in a situation of “seriousness and urgency of risk of irreparable damage to their rights in Nicaragua.”
In the resolution, the IACHR points out that Peraza has allergy problems and lacerations to his buttocks, due to the humidity, poor ventilation, and the cement bed.
“Mr. Peraza Collado asked his relatives for a cream to treat his skin infection, as well as antibiotics. He also reported having a tooth infection, as well as feeling pain in the prostate, heartburn and other stomach problems, without having been treated to date, ”says the letter. He specifies that on April 29, 2022, the political scientist suffered from a kidney infection, “suffering from severe pain, fever and even urinating blood, for which he was prescribed Nitrofurantoin -antibiotic- for a month, without further follow-up”.
Reyes, a member of the UNAB political council, has shown a notable deterioration in his physical and mental health, and continues to worsen, the resolution states. He suffers from memory loss, anxiety attacks that cause him to pull out the hair on his head and chest, and feels severe depression. He also suffers from vision problems, insomnia, weight loss, constipation, tooth pain, allergic sinusitis, and skin problems.
A medical examination indicated that he had vitiligo. He has had access to some medications and vitamins, but his health continues to decline because he does not receive proper care.
The situation of Larios, 63 years old and a member of the Articulation of Social Movements, is similar to that of other prisoners of conscience. There is a “deterioration and aggravation in his physical and mental condition” of him.
He suffers from high blood pressure, uric acid changes, weight loss, fluid retention, insomnia and anxiety. These have revealed several health crises and in October 2021 he was hospitalized for three days at the El Chipote clinic.
The health of Hernández, also a member of the political council of the UNAB, has been detrimental. In addition to previous ailments such as high blood pressure and vitiligo, she has developed new illnesses from prison conditions.
“He has had significant weight loss due to dietary restrictions, constant questioning, and lack of access to medication or proper medical care. Additionally, the relatives of the proposed beneficiary reported that there would be signs of alleged torture on his body and that he would have reported stomach problems such as constipation, heartburn and abdominal distention, which would be a clinical picture of his gastritis disease, which would have been exacerbated during his stay. detention,” reads the IACHR resolution.
