Evangelical leader John Britton Hancock, director of Mountain Gateway based in Texas, to which at least 13 Nicaraguan missionaries belonged who were released from prison by the government of Daniel Ortega, along with more than 100 other political prisoners, expressed his gratitude to President Joe Biden for advocating for their release.
Britton told the Voice of America which since February has begun negotiations with the White House, the State Department and the United States Congress to achieve the release of the missionaries in Nicaragua.
The missionaries were arrested in Nicaragua in December and January, accused of being part of a money laundering network and of being part of a “criminal structure made up of the subjects Jacob Britton Hancock, Jon Britton Hancock and Cassandra Mae Hancock,” according to the police.
“Our entire government responded in a big way, including many members of Congress, over a hundred members. The White House, President Biden’s administration was key, they responded in a number of ways and we are happy with the way Congress, the State Department and the White House reacted and negotiated freedom for everyone,” Britton said via Skype to the VOA.
The evangelist mentions that for now they will look for a way to collaborate so that the missionaries can rebuild their lives in exile, after having been banished from Nicaragua and welcomed by the Guatemalan government.
“We are ready to help them to the very end so that they can recover and restart their lives in a new country. It is a sometimes difficult process that involves many emotions, but we are ready to support them in various ways in these things,” said the evangelist.
Three of those jailed were pastors and other religious leaders. The church’s focus was “one hundred percent working among remote communities, winning souls, making disciples, raising up and building new local leaders,” according to Britton, who said he was “surprised” by the indictment from Nicaraguan authorities.
He said he did not receive an official notification from Nicaragua, but rather from local newspapers. The pastor dismisses the possibility that it has anything to do with politics.
“We were not there in Nicaragua for any politician and we are not politicians. We are ministers of the gospel and we bring the gospel to anyone, even people in the government. We want them to give their lives to Jesus Christ. I had the opportunity to preach to the Nicaraguan Congress and the National Police, and I preached according to the gospel, with the Bible and doing things like that,” he lamented.
Finally, he concluded by sending a message to the Nicaraguan authorities for releasing the missionaries. “My message is to ask the entire Nicaraguan government to return to the institutions, to democracy, to freedom. Please stop, stop the mechanisms of control of people, thoughts, comments. They are causing a lot of fear there,” he concluded.
Nicaragua is experiencing a socio-political crisis for six years after the emergence of protests against President Daniel Ortega, which were repressed, leaving more than 300 dead and thousands detained and exiled.
Ortega’s Sandinista government has accused various sectors, including religious groups, of conspiring with opponents to try to remove him from office, which will complete its 17th consecutive year in 2024.
Human rights reports have indicated that Ortega has escalated “repression” of the Catholic Church, as well as the evangelical church.
Connect with the Voice of America! Subscribe to our channels YouTube, WhatsApp and to newsletter. Turn on notifications and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram.
