The United Nations Human Rights Council has adopted this Thursday a resolution that establishes that for a year a group of experts -with an investigation and accountability mandate- work to clarify “the serious violations of human rights committed in Nicaragua” during the year 2018.
The resolution that was presented by Chile and approved with 20 votes in favor, 20 abstentions and 7 votes against establishes, among other things, that a group of three experts, who will be appointed by the president of the Human Rights Council, will undertake exhaustive investigations of all the alleged abuses committed during the administration of Daniel Ortega.
This is intended to identify those responsible, and to make that information accessible and usable in support of current and future accountability initiatives, indicates the official UN document.
The Ortega Administration has reacted annoyed to the formation of the group of experts and has expressed “its absolute rejection of the resolutions” since, as it indicates, “they are instrumentalized assessments derived from economic and political interests.”
“We do not accept any resolution, update or report on Human Rights in Nicaragua, because they lack objectivity and are covered by a clearly defined political and interventionist bias; far from being based on a truthful compilation of the reality of the Human Rights of Nicaraguans,” said the Attorney General of the Republic, Wendy Morales.
Organizations celebrate resolution
The resolution has generated hope in local and international organizations that indicate that it could be the beginning of a long justice process to which those responsible for violating human rights would be subjected.
In fact, a coalition of 21 international, regional and Nicaraguan human rights organizations spoke out on the matter and celebrated the resolution.
The Nicaraguan organization Open Ballot Boxes expressed in a statement that “in the midst of repression and a co-opted justice system that is a key part of the repression, the establishment of an accountability mechanism by the UN Council is the support that human rights organizations need. to ensure truth, justice and reparation for the victims in a future justice process”.
For her part, Vilma Nuñez de Escorcia, president of the CENIDH-Nicaragua, indicated in another statement the importance of the commission since, in her opinion, the authorities have shown no intention of cooperating with either the United Nations or the Inter-American human rights system. humans.
“Ortega has closed himself to scrutiny”
According to statements to the voice of america by Juan Pappier, senior investigator of the Americas division of Human Rights Watch, “Ortega has closed himself off from international scrutiny”, not collaborating with the United Nations, expelling the Apostolic Nuncio and the representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross.”
Therefore, he considers that blocking the delegation that would be delegated would not be the exception, however, he assures that if Ortega does not allow them to visit the country, “they can interview relatives of victims, talk to those Nicaraguans who have had to leave the country. , many of them in Costa Rica or the United States, and can collect all kinds of evidence to reach conclusions about the human rights violations that are being committed.”
Pappier mentions that other entities of this type exist in Venezuela or Yemen for a similar task.
“I think this, in this bleak scenario, could be good news to give the victims of these systematic human rights violations at least a glimmer of hope that there will ever be justice and those responsible for these human rights violations humans will be brought to justice,” the HRW spokesperson said.
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