The economist, political analyst and former opposition deputy Enrique Sáenz affirms that the dialogue between the Vatican and the regime of Daniel Ortega could not be beneficial for the Catholic Church, on the contrary, it would seek to “silence the prophetic voice” of Monsignor Rolando Álvarez and the other priests caught.
«Negotiating with Ortega is the same as negotiating with a terrorist. I don’t know if the Vatican negotiates with terrorists. In addition to trying to silence the prophetic voice of Monsignor Álvarez, the dictator is holding him hostage. What can the Vatican offer Ortega in exchange for the monsignor’s freedom? The complicit silence of the Church in the face of the excesses of the dictatorship?” questioned the analyst in an interview with Article 66.
Related news: The Vatican in dialogue with the Nicaraguan regime over the situation of Monsignor Álvarez, confirms the CEN
He emphasizes that one of Ortega’s claims is that the appointments of the bishops have his consent, for which he wonders if the Holy See “will accept such a condition? For now, it is not even clear if there is such a dialogue or not because, if it exists, until now we have seen the violent monologue of the dictator, at the level of speech and at the level of actions, “he adds.
«We cannot have any illusions, neither with the freedom of the monsignor nor with the attitude of the Vatican: They did not say anything with the closure of the Catholic media. They did not say anything with the expulsion of the nuns of the Order of Mother Teresa of Calcutta. They did not say anything with the expulsion of Monsignor Sommertag. They lent themselves to the banishment of Monsignor Báez, “says Sáenz.
The news of the dialogue between the Holy See and Managua was confirmed on January 11 by Monsignor Carlos Herrera, president of the Nicaraguan Episcopal Conference (CEN), to the digital media Office 505. “I can’t tell you much because they are things of the State , but he is still in that process, in that dialogue with the Holy See, still, to clarify why they are accusing him (Monsignor Álvarez),” Herrera said.
On January 10, the Sandinista regime took Monsignor Álvarez to the Managua Courts for an initial hearing, in which he admitted the accusation against him, maintained preventive detention, and sent him to trial for the aforementioned crimes.
Given this, Sáenz points out that Pope Francis has still not said anything about the monsignor’s imprisonment, “those are the facts. We hope that both the Episcopal Conference and the Vatican rectify and carry out the pastoral and prophetic mission that they proclaim”, he concluded.
