MEXICO CITY.- At least 256 associations linked to the Protestant or Evangelical Church have been closed in Nicaraguaas part of the more than 3,500 NGOs closed by the regime Daniel Ortega in the last two years, according to a study released Thursday by a human rights organization.
While the Sandinista dictatorship has been accused of “persecuting and besieging” the Catholic Church, banning its processions and banishing priests and nuns, evangelicals are also suffering “harassment and harassment,” noted the report titled “Closing of civic space.” and prepared by the Nicaragua Never Again Human Rights Collective.
Closure of religious organizations in Nicaragua
According to the study, the Nicaraguan regime has closed or dissolved 342 religious organizations, of which 256 were evangelical associations, 43 Catholic, and another 43 linked to other churches.
Several Catholic bishops did question the Nicaraguan dictatorship due to the 2018 protests, one of them, Monsignor Rolando Álvarez, is currently imprisoned, serving a 26-year prison sentence for alleged “treason to the country.”
Lawyer Wendy Flores, coordinator of the Human Rights Collective, assures that “in Nicaragua the church is persecuted,” but in the case of evangelicals there is a “more silent persecution,” because they avoid denouncing the regime for fear of reprisals.
“The regime has been gradually closing these evangelical associations, taking away their permits to legally exist in the country and receive funds from abroad,” he indicated. He highlighted that of the 256 closed, the majority (183) were closed in 2022.
As in the case of the 3,552 NGOs of different types dissolved throughout the country, evangelical associations “have had bank accounts closed and properties confiscated,” added Flores.
However, the religious activity of these groups is still maintained and services are still held in different cities of the country.
The vast majority of the Nicaraguan population is a believer and professes some religion. According to recent data, 45% identify with the Catholic Church and another equal percentage with the evangelical or Protestant, which has greater roots in the interior of the country and in rural areas.
According to the Nicaragua Never Again Human Rights Collective, which is based in Costa Rica, between 2019 and 2023 the Catholic Church suffered 1,200 cases of attacks. In that period, dozens of nuns and priests were expelled from the country and 12 religious were imprisoned and sentenced to sentences of 8 to 30 years in prison, including Bishop Álvarez, who remains imprisoned.
Source: AP
