After the initial hearing against Monsignor Rolando Alvarez, held on Tuesday, January 10, in the courts of Managua; the priest in exile Rafael Bermúdez criticized the process and pointed out that the Ortega justice “must already have the draft of the sentence.”
After more than five months of kidnapping, the bishop of the Diocese of Matagalpa was sent to trial by the judge Gloria Maria Saavedra Corrales of the Tenth Penal District Court of Managua.
Related news: Ortega judge takes Monsignor Álvarez to trial and keeps him under arrest
The prelate is accused by the Nicaraguan dictatorship of the alleged crimes of conspiracy to undermine national integrity and propagation of false news to the detriment of the State and Nicaraguan society.
Given the situation facing the religious, Father Bermúdez indicated that there is no possibility that the Nicaraguan justice system will rule in favor of Álvarez. “As things are in Nicaragua, the draft will be ready tomorrow, it will only be defined how many years they will apply.”
Regarding the accusation against the bishop, which is based on the combo of repressive laws created in 2020, the priest stated that “this is like a canned food, when something is missing – the Ortega dictatorship – it submits it to its Assembly, to create laws and thus say that he violated that law and thus apply it to him ».
On the other hand, the father sent words of encouragement to Monsignor Álvarez, who has become a political prisoner of Ortega. “I want to tell him that although we are not physically with him, we do carry that cross with a lot of pain (…) We have firm faith and we remember that Christ became human to eliminate the devil’s weapon that was death,” he encouraged.
“Everything is set up”
On the other hand, Father Bermúdez expressed that «personally I do not want to be pessimistic, but I do not see anything new, that —the sentence— is already there; What is new is the victim —Monsignor Álvarez—, the person they are accusing according to the Ortega and Murillo justice”.
“This is sad because I can’t imagine how many things tomorrow will be able to be corrected in the Constitution itself —Politics— or laws, because many arbitrariness are being committed against Nicaraguans,” he added.
Related news: Calidh: Process against Monsignor Álvarez “violates international human rights commitments”
Referring to the constant attack against the Catholic Church in Nicaragua by the Ortega regime, the priest said that the religious institution “was the last link in the chain to put it in the smelting furnace.”
In addition, he stressed that the political crisis that Nicaragua is experiencing is the product of the lack of unity and communion among all sectors of the country. “At the time they did not know how to unite and the only link that is being attacked is the Church and there is no longer the capacity to continue resenting all the jerks and attacks that the dictatorship is carrying out,” he lamented.
Referring to a future dialogue with the dictator Daniel Ortega to solve the situation in the country, Bermúdez stated that the only way for it to work is that “it be done as the Church tried on the first occasion, which was a public conversation, so that look who is who.”
“Otherwise, all that remains is family resistance, which is not contributing to feeding and strengthening the Ortega and Murillo dictatorship,” stressed Father Bermúdez.
