Concern arises that opponents and state workers are more closely monitored through their posts on social networks. The espionage method threatens the rights and civil liberties of Nicaraguans and was confirmed by a young man who recently left the country, aided by the humanitarian parole program. He denounced that the Ortega Police and paramilitaries were following him because of his posts on Facebook.
“The police began to investigate after the end of Holy Week. In those days, I published the police siege of the processions and church that I attended,” said Edwin, a young man who belonged to the San Juan Bautista parish community, in Sutiaba, in the municipality of León.
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On May 1, Workers’ Day, Edwin left Nicaragua for the United States, favored by the humanitarian permit that prevented him from falling into the hands of the Ortega Police. He assures that they had been following him because of his publications against the repression.
«A friend told me that the police were watching me and that they were opening a process for robbery with intimidation. My crime was to publish about the banishment of Monsignor Rodrigo Urbina and the threats by the Police against the Church so that they would not take out the processions during Holy Week,” he recounted.
persecuted youth
He added that in 2018, the youth of León told Ortega “out”, however, he clung to power and responded with arms. “Since then, the siege, death threats, jail and forced exile have not stopped and now they are watching us through the networks,” he denounced.
The graph shows an Ortega Police agent supervising a call center intended to monitor the social networks of the population.
The 25-year-old is a practicing Catholic, and has criticized the arbitrary actions committed by the Ortega and Murillo regime against the Catholic Church and the Nicaraguan people, kidnapped by its repressive policies. He assured that two of his community members were also forced to leave their land and go into exile to save their lives, because they were persecuted for sharing news from opposition media.
«There is a witch hunt in León against all opponents. A month ago a friend who worked for the government also went into exile because she was branded a coup plotter, just for criticizing the police siege of churches. In Nicaragua, the majority of us are Catholics and Marians par excellence, Ortega is not going to change that, “she recalled.
Who monitors the networks?
A former police officer consulted for this report said that the search for opponents began in 2019, after the Ortega regime managed to gain control of the country, but not of social networks.
A trainer is observed imparting the doctrine and procedure for the siege of millions of citizens opposed to the dictatorship, day and night they monitor social networks to find any indication of citizen opposition to the regime.
“Currently, it is one of the tools used by the political team and the Intelligence team, they monitor the social networks of opponents and state workers with the aim of identifying possible threats of rebellion,” said the former police officer who deserted at the beginning of 2022 and now lives in exile.
He assured that one of the main surveillance networks is the network of young people belonging to the Sandinista Youth, they are in charge of monitoring social networks and opposition media, but the Police do not trust them. So now they do it with the support of politicians, CUUN students, the National Technological Institute (Inatec), the Mayor’s Office, the Ministry of Health, Education, the Court and operators of the Sandinista Front department.
with fake accounts
A source close to the department of the Sandinista party in León revealed that the regime also uses social networks to have an “ear up” through false accounts to identify opponents and any movement coordination they are doing.
“These ears monitor a long list of websites and news pages that have been created since 2018, and have been well received on social media platforms. This type of surveillance can alert the government to the latest news that is published of a political, social and religious nature and that is identified as a threat or danger to the regime,” the source said.
Cyber experts warned of the dangers that exist in the depths of the web and recommended that users know how to identify their contacts, friends or followers on their social media platforms, now monitored by the police and their repressive system in Nicaragua to imprison, prosecute and convict.
By: United Voices.
