There is a famous saying in Nicaragua: When praises go up, blessings come down. However, this has changed in recent years. Religious activities, particularly those organized by the Catholic Church, are reportedly under permanent repression by the National Police, controlled by the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega. When praises go up — the police officers come down.
Religious freedom, as well as economic and political conditions, are part of the main drivers of the wave of Nicaraguan migrants to the U.S. More than 180,000 Nicaraguans cross the border this year, 60 times more than in 2020.
The Nicaraguan church has played a key role since the 2018 civic protests, in which 355 people have been killed, according to the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights. Since then, Ortega has done everything possible to strangle the prophetic voice of the church.
The diplomacy of Pope Francis
Pope Francis has been criticized for his prudence and patience in the face of the ferocious attacks by the Nicaragua regime, who has reportedly carried out 396 brutal acts against the Catholic Church over the last four years. During a recent interview published by ABC Spain, Pope Francis said the Catholic Church is facing attacks by authoritarian regimes with the weapons of diplomacy and dialogue.
“The Holy See never leaves. It gets thrown out. It always attempts to save diplomatic relations and save whatever can be saved through patience and dialogue”, the pope said.
While the diplomacy of the Vatican follows its periods and its protocols, the Nicaraguan dictator does not. This year, 12 members of the church have been arrested, temples have been desecrated and 20 Catholic radios and televisions have been closed. Ortega has called the Vatican “the perfect dictatorship.”
For the first time in the history of Nicaragua, a Catholic bishop was arrested. Monsignor Rolando Álvarez apparently unleashed the fury of the dictatorship by questioning the abuses of power and demanding the release of 235 political prisoners. The bishop of the Diocese of Matagalpa has been incarcerated for more than four months. The Nicaragua Attorney General Office announced, after 120 days of silence, that Alvarez is being charged with “conspiracy to undermine the national integrity and spread of fake news through information technologies.”
Ortega is on the blacklist for attacks on religious freedom
Earlier this month, the U.S. government announced that the regimes of Nicaragua and Cuba were added to the list of countries denounced for violations against religious freedoms. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, said such violations “sow division, undermine economic security, and threaten political stability and peace. The United States will not stand by in the face of these abuses.”
The cry out of an orphan church
The pope’s strategy, although well-intentioned, has left Nicaraguan church orphan in the face of the permanent harassment of the dictatorship, which has prohibited all liturgical processions of the church. Something never seen in the history of the country.
On Dec. 13, a group of Nicaraguan religious leaders, under condition of anonymity, sent a letter to Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes, the highest authority of the Nicaraguan Catholic Church, asking to raise his voice in the face of Ortega’s abuses.
“Thousands of Nicaraguans are suffering the drama of poverty, unemployment, forced migration, unfair imprisonment, painful exile, the loss of dear members of their families. Nevertheless, you do everything possible to avoid conflict with the bloody dictatorship of Nicaragua”, the letter states.
Member of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops speaks out
Bishop David J. Malloy, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on International Justice and Peace, has raised his voice in the face of the persecution suffered by the Nicaraguan Church. “The regime and its allies have been implementing a policy of severe, systematic physical, rhetorical, and institutional aggression and intimidation against the Catholic Church in Nicaragua. This has included unjust detentions, violence, prohibition of priests from returning to Nicaragua, desecrations of sacred images, and even profanations of the Blessed Sacrament,” the bishop noted.
“I call on the U.S. Government and the international community to pursue the immediate release of Bishop Álvarez, the restoration of religious freedom and human rights guarantees, and initiate a process of restoring the democratic order and the rule of law in Nicaragua,” he added.
Religious freedom for all
Nicaragua has become the first Latin American country in which keeping the Catholic faith can mean jail. Religious freedom is an essential human right. The U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights states, “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.”
While religious and civil liberties continue to be under attack in Nicaragua, migration will continue to rise. A humanitarian, legal and comprehensive response is urgent.
Arturo McFields Yescas is former ambassador of Nicaragua to the Organization of American States. Follow him on Twitter: @ArturoMcfields