Father Ramiro Tijerino, rector of the Juan Pablo II University and in charge of the San Juan Bautista parish, was arbitrarily detained along with Monsignor Rolando Álvarez and the people who remained locked up in the Episcopal Curia of Matagalpa. The parish priest is currently in “El Nuevo Chipote”.
The priest had denounced through his homilies the human rights violations committed by the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo. During his time locked up in the Curia he had presented deteriorations in his health due to his suffering from hypertension, diabetes, and spinal problems.
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Tijerino was appointed judge in the cause of canonization of Fray Odorico D’Andrea on August 24, 2022, the priest of Italian origin who made armies at war embrace and whose pastoral work was carried out mainly in the municipality of San Rafael del Norte , department of Jinotega.
The priest is the uncle of Manuel Picado Tijerino, a former political prisoner from Matagalpa and the grandson of Doris Tijerino, a former Sandinista combatant. The former hostage of conscience was taken to his house under house arrest on February 27, 2019. Picado Tijerino was captured in June 2018 along with four other young men also from Matagalpa.
Days ago the Archdiocese of Managua expressed its support for Álvarez. The Latin American Episcopal Conference (Celam) denounced what it called a “siege” of priests and bishops, the expulsion of members of religious communities and “constant harassment.” to the Nicaraguan people and Church.
A week ago, Monsignor Juan Antonio Cruz, the Vatican’s permanent observer to the Organization of American States, expressed concern about the situation and asked the parties to “seek ways of understanding.”
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For its part, the Archdiocese of Managua in its low-profile statement states that “we hope that reason, as well as respectful understanding, open the way to the solution of this critical and complex situation for all.”
Since August 4, the San Pedro Cathedral Church in Matagalpa has been besieged by police agents and regime sympathizers. A strong police contingent blocked all access to the Curia with yellow fences, preventing the free movement of citizens.
