Monsignor Rolando Álvarez, bishop of the Diocese of Matagalpa and apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Estelí, celebrated his six-month prisoner of conscience under the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo on February 19. Since February 9, he has been held captive in the Jorge Navarro National Penitentiary System (SPN), known as “La Modelo”, as reported by Ortega himself.
Since his violent capture in the Episcopal Palace of Matagalpa on August 19, 2021, the bishop has been under house arrest in a family home in Managua with police custody. The bishop was transferred to “La Modelo” after refusing to board a plane bound for the United States on February 9. That flight was to exile.
Monsignor Álvarez’s decision enraged Daniel Ortega, who ordered him to be locked up in the ergastula of his dictatorship. The following day he was taken to the Courts of Managua to submit him to an express summary trial that culminated in a guilty verdict for alleged crimes of “treason against the homeland.”
Related news: Monsignor Báez condemns Ortega’s attacks on the Catholic Church: He is an “atheist, corrupt and criminal”
The Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (Cenidh), an organization that has documented the persecution against the Church and the case of Bishop Álvarez, urged Nicaraguans to “continue clamoring for the freedom of Monsignor Rolando Álvarez.” “Where is the? What is his physical and psychological condition? »Cenidh questioned on his Twitter account.
The agency explains that the life of the Catholic hierarch “is in danger.” In a video posted on the social network, Cenidh explains that it is unknown how Bishop Álvarez is being kept in “La Modelo”, what cell he is in, if his family has been able to see him and deliver parcels to him.
The Blue and White National Unit (UNAB) also spoke on its social networks about the imprisonment of Monsignor Rolando Álvarez. “We demand the immediate release of Monsignor Álvarez! In Nicaragua Monsignor has been unjustly kidnapped for raising his voice in the face of so much evil. Let us demand justice for Monsignor Álvarez,” the opposition organization wrote on Twitter.
After being found guilty, on January 10, Monsignor Rolando Álvarez was sentenced to 26 years in prison for the alleged crimes of undermining national integrity, spreading false news, and obstructing functions.
