More than 200 Nicaraguan political prisoners have been released and are being transferred to the United States, media and detainee relatives reported Thursday.
The freedmen are said to be part of the group of dozens of opponent journalists and religious who have been detained in recent years during President Daniel Ortega’s administration since the strong wave of protests in 2018 and the presidential election won in 2021.
Local news portal Confidencial reported that those benefiting from the measure include inmates who have served more than two years in Modelo Prison, as well as others who were in El Chipote Prison or under house arrest.
Berta Valle, wife of imprisoned opposition figure Félix Maradiaga, told reporters that the US State Department had confirmed to her that Nicaraguan authorities had released 213 “political prisoners” who had taken them to Managua International Airport, where they were boarded on a plane. were posted that come this Thursday Washington.
The director of the NGO Amnesty International for the Americas, Erika Guevara Rosas, celebrated these liberations, even though they are “exiled” people. “They were arrested for defending human rights and speaking out against a ruthless regime,” he said on Twitter.
On Monday, a judge in Nicaragua sentenced four priests and two seminarians to 10 years in prison for treason and spreading fake news, amid what human rights groups are calling one of the biggest attacks against President Daniel Ortega’s critics.
This comes after Father Óscar Danilo Benavidez Dávila, a critic of the Daniel Ortega administration, was sentenced on Sunday to 10 years in prison for conspiracy and spreading false news against the state of Nicaragua and society.
The six religious convicted on Monday belong to the diocese of Matagalpa, in Nicaragua, headed by Bishop Rolando Álvarez, a government critic who was arrested with them in August.
With information from Reuters, EFE and Europa Press
Source: La Neta Neta
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
