Nicaraguan human rights organizations and foundations presented this Tuesday morning a set of three complementary reports that include the “violations of freedom of association” committed by the Ortega-Murillo regime from 2018 to date. The document presents nine complete files that will be presented internationally.
“It is possible to document that the closure of these nine organizations has generated almost four million dollars in confiscations to the state coffers. Likewise, approximately 50,000 people each year were left without access to the essential services provided by these organizations, which had coverage in more than 50 municipalities (30%) throughout Nicaragua, with special attention to the North and Caribbean region. Also, at least 152 people who made up these nine organizations were left unemployed,” says the letter released on December 6.
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In addition, they denounce the criminalization route used by Ortega that began with constant attacks and aggressions against the members of the non-profit associations, defamation campaigns, threats, surveillance, arrests, among other repressive actions that put at risk
the life, integrity and freedom of activists and defenders.
Amaru Ruiz, from Fundación del Río, explained that the efforts to document and open files of these organizations resulted in the closure of more than 42% of the civic space that existed before 2018. “The regime reported 7,227 active legal entities already To date we have canceled 3,106 legal statuses, which shows you the magnitude of a violation of human rights recognized in the Political Constitution of Nicaragua and recognized in the International Framework of Human Rights. Obviously our effort as civil society organizations continues,” said the activist.
They affirm that these data even astonish the United Nations Rapporteur for Freedom of Association and the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), who have urged the State to “restore and make effective the full enjoyment of civil and political rights, especially freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association.
On December 16, 2020, Popol Na and Fundación del Río presented the first report systematizing the serious violations of the right of association that have occurred in Nicaragua since the Ortega-Murillo regime took control of the State in 2007. The document mentions 287 religious associations illegalized and persecuted, 328 NGO organizations, 363 trade unions, 82 cultural associations, 60 medical associations and 54 independent media.
During the presentation, they made reference to the creation of the website called “Freedom of Association” which will have the objective of monitoring the situation of freedom of association in the country to “have and obtain updated reports, studies and data that can be downloaded for the citizen analysis.
The organizations call on the international community “to raise its commitment to provide supportive responses to the victims of the human rights crisis. The experts expressed their concern about the arbitrary closure of hundreds of civil society organizations and warned that it represents a clear pattern of repression of civic space.
