Washington, May 11. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Spain, José Manuel Albares, met this Thursday in Washington with Nicaraguan opponents stripped of their nationality, to whom he promised that those who request it will receive Spanish citizenship “shortly” and that the offer will continue to stand for a long time. that is necessary.
The Spanish Council of Ministers granted Spanish nationality for the first time at its extraordinary meeting this Thursday to 14 Nicaraguans exiled by the Government of Daniel Ortega, an application that has been submitted so far by 101 people.
“Obviously all of them are going to be answered favorably in a short time,” the minister told EFE at the end of the meeting, in which he confirmed that the offer “will remain open for as long as necessary for these people” and for others who in the future are stripped of their nationality.
Albares met with a dozen of them at the Spanish Embassy in the United States, where the Nicaraguans expressed their gratitude for the offer and voiced some concerns, such as ways to find employment in Spain or to reunite with their families.
The minister explained to them that the offer for them to be nationalized as Spaniards is independent of their place of residence, so they can move to Spain, stay in the United States or move to countries closer to Nicaragua, such as Costa Rica.
For now, the 222 Nicaraguan political prisoners who were exiled from the country by Ortega last February and sent by plane to Washington, as well as 94 other opponents who were also stripped of their citizenship, can apply for Spanish citizenship.
Asked about the political situation in Nicaragua, Albares replied: “We want for all the countries of Latin America, without distinction, the same thing that we want for Spain and for the Spaniards: Prosperity, freedom, democracy and social justice.”
Among the Nicaraguans who met with Albares was Juan Sebastián Chamorro, a pre-candidate for the Nicaraguan presidency, who spent 18 months in prison until he was expelled from the country and sent by plane to the United States.
“It was a work session, but also to thank the minister for everything they have done for us at a time of repression by the Ortega dictatorship,” Chamorro explained to EFE about the meeting.
He recalled that Spain was the first country that “in solidarity” offered stateless persons their nationality, a step that Mexico, Colombia and Chile later also took.
In the specific case of Chamorro, he is consulting with his lawyers whether requesting Spanish citizenship could hinder his asylum application process in the United States, a doubt shared by other former political prisoners.
The opposition leader admitted that being outside his country is a “challenge” to maintain the political struggle, but affirmed that he will continue to denounce the abuses committed by Ortega internationally and was convinced that he will end up falling because “all the dictatorships that have existed in the history of the world they have disappeared”.
“I have no doubt that we are going to return to a free, democratic and fair Nicaragua,” he concluded.
