In a significant development, Nicaragua’s government has freed a dozen Catholic priests from jail, transporting them to Rome following negotiations with the Vatican. The government’s statement on Wednesday revealed that the priests were flown to Rome in the afternoon, marking a positive outcome of talks with Catholic leaders in Nicaragua and undisclosed individuals in the Vatican. The agreement reflects “the permanent will and commitment to find solutions,” as stated in the official release.
President Daniel Ortega, in power since 2006, has faced criticism for cracking down on opposition, particularly since 2018 when social security cuts triggered widespread anti-government protests. Ortega accused the church of supporting these protests, deeming them an attempted coup. In 2023, he intensified actions against Catholic clergy and church-affiliated institutions, accusing them of attempting to overthrow the government.
Government surveillance of services and assaults on Nicaraguan clergy have been reported. Bishop Rolando Alvarez, who criticised the 2018 crackdown, was arrested in 2022 and sentenced to 26 years in prison on treason charges in February. Notably, he did not join the flight of 222 political prisoners sent to the US in a deal brokered by the US government, leading to the government stripping those prisoners of their citizenship.
Despite these actions, Ortega, a figure in Nicaraguan politics since the overthrow of the Somoza family dictatorship in 1979, has faced accusations of dismantling the country’s fragile democracy. Last month, the United Nations-appointed Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua reported a worsening human rights situation in the past six months, citing the erosion of academic freedom and university closures.
In August, the government seized property and assets of the Jesuit-run Central American University (UCA), a prominent institution of higher education accused of functioning as a “centre of terrorism.” The UN panel highlighted that 27 private institutions had their legal status canceled in recent years.
Approximately 43% of Nicaragua’s population is Catholic, with a declining number amid growing interest in evangelical churches, according to the US State Department’s latest report on religious freedom in Nicaragua. The release of the twelve priests is seen as a significant development in the complex relationship between the Nicaraguan government and the Catholic Church.
