The Inter-American Press Association held a “mid-year” meeting to report that there was an increase in repression against journalists and media outlets from different Latin American countries, including Nicaragua, where there was “a dismantling of the independent press.”
«2024 is an electorally intense year for the continent, with growing risks for freedoms of expression and the press. The signs of intolerance of politicians with a high chance of accessing power and of the authorities of various countries darken the horizon for the practice of journalism,” details a report published on the IAPA’s official website.
Related news: Repression and violations of press freedom forced nine other journalists to go into exile
In the case of Nicaragua, the journalistic organization assured that “to the confiscations, imprisonment and exile of editors and journalists, (the Nicaraguan government) adds persecution against relatives and looting of homes and bank accounts of those who maintain a critical voice.” .
The organization noted that the Special Cybercrime Law, imposed by the Ortega regime, “was designed and is used to persecute any expression critical of official discourse on social networks.”
The IAPA indicated that the governments of Nicaragua, Peru and Venezuela maintain “surveillance mechanisms against journalists”, just as freedom of expression is also “vilified through the denial of access to public information to both citizens and journalists in Nicaragua, Bolivia , United States, El Salvador Paraguay, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
Likewise, the press group indicated that in Nicaragua and other nations in the region “a political discourse is combined that postulates direct communication with the public and enhances confrontation with the media and journalists through practices of espionage, harassment virtual and strategic lawsuits, which seek to silence critical voices.
“At the same time, in some countries the imprisonment and forced exile or deportations suffered by journalists come from state actors and organized crime alike,” the IAPA said.
Journalism in Nicaragua
Practicing journalism in Nicaragua has been dangerous since Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo attacked the Presidency. The men and women of the press became targets of attacks and state persecution for reporting and exercising their constitutional right.
At least 246 journalists have had to leave the country to protect their physical integrity, according to data from the Foundation for Freedom of Expression and Democracy (FLED). This number of exiled communicators leaves an information vacuum in the editorial offices of national media, which are under threats of closure if they continue to expose human rights violations.
«Nicaraguan journalists continue to go into exile. 246 have left their country due to aggressions and attacks by the State of Nicaragua in retaliation for their informative work. The State of Nicaragua must put an end to attacks against journalists and citizens,” the organization highlights.
Related news: Ortega dictatorship tries to destroy independent journalists and their families, defenders warn
Starting in 2018, Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo intensified their policy of repression against the independent press. They launched an excessive war that included the murder of journalist Ángel Gahona, the closure and confiscation of media outlets, persecution, harassment, threats, prison, exile and seizure of nationality, among others. Currently, journalist Víctor Ticay is a political prisoner of the dictatorship.
Data from organizations that work on freedom of the press and expression indicate that from 2007 to 2022, Confidencial, Canal 100% Noticias, La Prensa and Radio Vos de Matagalpa were raided and subsequently confiscated, along with at least 57 other media outlets. They have closed.
