A religious source that follows the case of Monsignor Rolando Álvarez in secrecy and prudence sees how «a monumental defeat» the efforts of the dictator Daniel Ortega to get rid of the world scorn for condemning the Bishop.
Far from «be strong and victorious» As the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo is usually declared, after committing all kinds of barbarism against his opponents, the permanence in jail of Monsignor Rolando Álvarez is considered by a Nicaraguan priest as «a moral defeat of the tyrants».
Nicaragua and the world saw step by step how the negotiations between the dictatorship that plagues the Central American country and Vatican delegates went down the drain due to the firmness of the condemned bishop.
After 48 hours of information, rumors and speculation, the Nicaraguan dictators returned Bishop Álvarez to a punishment cell in the Penitentiary System, furious because the religious leader refused to go into exile, in the framework of high-level diplomatic talks between The Vatican and the Sandinista regime.
Annoyed by leaks
«They tell me that the dictators were furious that everything was leaking. They wanted to quietly remove the bishop and then give a winning speech, but they exploded in fury when they found out that Monsignor Álvarez told them that he would not leave the country.»revealed.
The informant in the cassock pointed out that Álvarez not only conditioned his departure on not accepting exile, but also demanded the freedom of the other priests and all the political prisoners, the release of the frozen accounts of the dioceses, the return of the assets confiscated from the church and a request for forgiveness from Ortega to the Catholic people.
«The delegates were extremely nervous and asked the monsignor to only agree to leave and that they, in a dialogue with Ortega, would bring those requests to him at another time.»said the source.
«The bishop is a man consistent with the principles of sacrifice and dedication of the Church, but he is also an obedient member. If the Pope had requested his transfer to Rome, as he did with Monsignor Silvio Báez, Bishop Álvarez would already be flying»said the source.
Ortega: «he is no longer nicaraguan»
According to unofficial information, the Vatican sent a high-level representative with the sole mission of negotiating the bishop’s departure and guaranteeing his exile to a third country of his choice, where he would receive the support of the Catholic Church.
Ortega, after international pressure and the advisory council of the president of Brazil, would have accepted the negotiations and allowed Álvarez to leave prison to arrange his release with members of the church with the only condition of accepting exile.
The arguments of the dictatorship were that the bishop «You cannot stay in Nicaragua because you are no longer a citizen, you are no longer Nicaraguan by law».
Monsignor Álvarez was stripped of his citizenship by judges of the Daniel Ortega regime, his assets were confiscated and he was sentenced in a speedy trial to 26 years in prison for the alleged crime of «treason».
The bishop remained firm: he will not leave the country
The dictatorship’s response, according to sources, was furious: return him to maximum security cells and order the release of the Vatican delegate who came to negotiate.
«The last hope was that the Pope would directly order the bishop to return to Rome, but it seems that such a request takes time in the church bureaucracy.»said the source.
«Ortega tied the noose around his neck when he imprisoned the bishop and now he can’t find a way to take it off», illustrated the source. The Nicaraguan cardinal, Leopoldo Brenes, according to the sources, would have been informed step by step of the efforts and obstacles, but in statements to the press he commented that Álvarez’s release was speculation.
By: United Voices.