The auxiliary bishop of Managua, Monsignor Silvio José Báez, once again addressed the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, pointing out that “a gang of criminals disguised as politicians” rules in Nicaragua.
«“A State without justice would be a band of thieves”. This sentence of Saint Augustine was quoted today by the Pope (Francis) upon arriving in the Congo. That State that Saint Augustine imagined would “be”, “already is” in some countries like Nicaragua, where he commands a gang of criminals disguised as politicians,” the Catholic hierarch expressed in a tweet.
Related news: Cenidh: Ortega wants to “dismantle the entire Catholic Church”
During his homily on Sunday, January 29, the exiled hierarch referred to three beatitudes: that of the poor in spirit, that of those who hunger and thirst for justice, and that of those who are persecuted for justice’s sake. .
«Those who for the sake of goodness and truth are slandered, are persecuted, condemned, suffer imprisonment or have been forced into exile, have not been wrong. Jesus invites you not to feel defeated, but rather happy for your choices and your struggles, since the powers of the world persecute and outrage the witnesses of the truth and the prophets of God”, said the monsignor, at a time when more than one dozens of religious and lay people are imprisoned under the Nicaraguan dictatorship.
To those who have not agreed or bowed to tyrants, who have resisted and denounced the ambitions for power, and “have endured the cross to be on the side of those crucified today, they have chosen the right path,” he added.
The prelate sent the message days after the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo declared “guilty” six religious and a layman from the diocese of Matagalpa, in what would be the prelude to the political trial against Monsignor Rolando Álvarez, bishop of the diocese. of that department and critical of human rights violations in the country.
The Nicaraguan dictatorship accuses them of conspiring and spreading false news against it. Monsignor Báez has been one of the qualified voices that has demanded the unconditional release of Monsignor Álvarez and other members of the Church.
This morning the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (Cenidh) denounced that the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, during the first month of 2023, has deepened the persecution against the Catholic Church. All the religious, except Bishop Álvarez because he has not yet faced trial, were found guilty by the regime of the alleged crimes of conspiracy to undermine national integrity and propagation of false news.
The entity also included that, during the month of January, Ortega “prohibited and prevented religious activities in different churches nationwide.” They stress that “he has denied entry to priests into his own country,” as recently happened with Monsignor Rodrigo Urbina, parish priest of the San Juan Bautista de Sutiaba church, belonging to the Diocese of León and Chinandega, who was preparing to return to Nicaragua for a trip to Miami, United States.
