government said in statement that the bishop “insisted in its destabilizing and provocative activities.” He did not specify or say what legal charges were brought against the Catholic leader. facing. Two weeks ago, police surrounded his home, saying he was under investigation. for allegedly sponsors violent anti-government group, he denies the allegation. government spokeswoman Rosa Murillo – Ortega’s wife and vice president – did not respond to a message asking comment.
in past yearOrtega government planted almost all of his best-Known opponents, including seven politicians who he was expected to run for president last November. His government It has also shut down hundreds of civil society groups, as well as universities and media organizations, in one of the strongest waves of repression in hemisphere.
He is engaged in increasingly bitter feud with religious leaders in a Catholic-majority country, the closure of eight Catholic radio stations, and the expulsion of the Vatican’s ambassador, Rev. Waldemar Sommertag. Authorities also expelled 18 nuns from missionaries of Charitable foundation founded by Mother Teresa, who helped run orphanages and orphanages.
Relations between Ortega and the church soured after government cracked down on nationwide protests in 2018, hint street battles what left more than 360 dead, according to human rights groups. When the Catholic bishops called for justiceOrtega government accused them of provoke a coup d’état. Several priests and prominent Bishop Silvio Baes of The Managua went into exile.
Alvarez, 55, has recently been the most influential Catholic critic. of in governmentSpeaking out in radio and newspaper interviews about what he denounced as Ortega’s authoritarian policies. behavior. After his arrest, the archdiocese of Managua said that his physical condition had deteriorated, but “his courage and spirit are strong.”
UN Secretary General António Guterres is “very concerned by hard close of democratic and civil space in Nicaragua and recent actions against civil society organizations, including of the Catholic Church,” the deputy press secretary told reporters on Friday After Bishop arrest. He named on Nicaraguan government to guarantee “freedom of associations, thoughts, consciences and religions, and free all people arbitrarily arrested.”
Government critics Alvarez said detention was amazing even by the standards of a country whose democracy has withered.
“With a sick, indignant heart, I condemn the nightly kidnapping of Monsignor Alvarez,” Baez tweeted. who lives in United States. “Once again, the dictatorship surpassed even its own evil and its diabolical spirit.”
Pope Francis has not commented publicly on bishop detention or any other recent government moves against Catholic Church, to the horror of some Latin American human rights activists. constant observer Organizations of of the United States, Monsignor Juan Antonio Cruz Serrano this month expressed his concern over developments and urged for dialogue.
Ortega, 76, helped lead Marxist Sandinista revolution that won in 1979 overthrow of the US-backed dictatorship of Somoza. He led government until 1990 and then returned to power in 2007. Last year won elections after the elimination of all possible opposition. Human rights organizations claim that government delayed more over 160 political prisoners.
According to the United Nations, more more than 120,000 Nicaraguans have fled the country since 2018, the largest exodus since the civil war. of 1980s.
Alvarez himself left country during the civil war, moving to Guatemala where he studied for priesthood. In 2011 he was appointed Bishop of Matagalpa, one of to the extent developed areas in Nicaragua. In 2015, he led major demonstrations. against government plans to allow booty in northern area of country, accusing it of polluting groundwater. government supported off.
Bishop went on on top of yourself remote parts of mountains to visit the sick and say mass,” said Emiliano Chamorro, journalist who accompanied him on several trips. “People love him. He true pastor”.
