On Monday, January 10, the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned six operators of the Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo regime, which includes the Minister of Defense, Rosa Adelina Barahona de Rivas and the Chief of the Army General Staff. from Nicaragua, Bayardo Ramón Rodríguez Ruíz.
“The Ortega-Murillo regime continues to subjugate democracy through sham elections, silencing peaceful opposition and holding hundreds of people as political prisoners,” said Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson of the sanctions.
Bayardo De Jesús Pulido Ortiz, Brigadier General and Head of the Personnel and Cadre Department of the Nicaraguan Army and member of the Board of Directors of the Military Institute of Social Welfare (IPSM), is also sanctioned from the military institution.
The three officials are part of the IPSM. According to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the United States Department of the Treasury, the Nicaraguan Army “not only refused to order the disarmament and dismantling of paramilitary or para-police forces during and after the political uprisings, but also it also provided weapons to the police officers who committed acts of violence against Nicaraguans ”.
Sanctions to Telcor and Eniminas officials
The sanctions affect Telcor’s general director, Nahima Janett Díaz Flores and Celina Delgado Castellón, Telcor’s deputy general director and member of the board of directors of the National Electricity Transmission Company (Enatrel) on behalf of Telcor.
The US also sanctions Ramón Humberto Calderón Vindell, retired major general, former chairman of the board of directors of the Nicaraguan state oil company Petróleos de Nicaragua and president of the Board of Directors of Eniminas.
In the statement they recall that on November 1, 2021, Meta (formerly Facebook Inc.) eliminated a troll farm of more than 1,000 social media accounts “managed by the Ortega-Murillo regime, operated mainly by Telctor employees, to influence public opinion in favor of the regime and disseminate negative information “
Regarding the sanction of an Eniminas official, they detail that the creation of that institution by the Nicaraguan Government in 2017, “increased state participation in the mining sector, especially in gold extraction, through joint ventures with private companies. ”.
“The value of Nicaraguan gold exports has increased dramatically in recent years, boosting the profits of its allies in the private sector and increasing the income of Eniminas, which is managed by important figures in the ruling party,” said OFAC.
About sanctions
The sanctions, carried out in conjunction with the European Union (EU), are released when “they are scheduled to take office today after fraudulent national elections orchestrated by his regime in November, further consolidating his grip on power to the detriment of the Nicaraguan people. ”.
“The United States and our partners are sending a clear message to President Ortega, Vice President Murillo and their inner circle that we continue to support the Nicaraguan people in their calls for the immediate release of these political prisoners and a return to democracy,” he says. the United States Government.
As a complement to OFAC’s actions, the State Department announced that it “took steps to impose visa restrictions on individuals complicit in undermining democracy in Nicaragua, including mayors, prosecutors, and university administrators, as well as police, penitentiary, and military officials. ”.
The Treasury Department recalled that, as a result of the sanctions, “all property and interests in the property of these people that are in the United States or in the possession or control of American persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC.”
In addition, he continued, “any entity that is owned, directly or indirectly, by 50% or more of said people is also blocked. OFAC regulations generally prohibit all dealings by US persons or within (or in transit) the United States involving any property or interest in the property of blocked or designated persons ”.
“The sanctions imposed today are not intended to be permanent, but are issued to encourage a positive change in behavior on the part of the identified individuals and the authoritarian regime they support,” they recall.
In the statement they insist that the United States has made it clear that the elimination of sanctions may be available to designated individuals and entities that “take concrete and significant measures to promote democracy and the rule of law in Nicaragua.”
