The regime of dictator Daniel Ortega decided to release several political prisoners this weekend. The action takes place days after the United States operation in Venezuela, which culminated in the capture of dictator Nicolás Maduro, the beginning of the release of political prisoners on Venezuelan soil and the American pressure for the Sandinista dictatorship to end arbitrary arrests.
On Saturday (10), the Sandinista regime reported that it was releasing “dozens of people” from the national penitentiary system, without disclosing an exact number or officially recognizing that the detainees had been arrested for political reasons. The statement also did not clarify whether those released will remain subject to restrictive measures, such as house arrest.
According to a human rights organization that monitors cases of political repression in the country, at least 19 people were released on the day of the announcement.
The release comes after a series of public demonstrations by the United States government against arbitrary arrests in Nicaragua. On Friday (9), the American embassy in Managua published a message praising the release of political prisoners in Venezuela and demanded that Nicaragua adopt the same stance, stating that more than 60 people were unjustly detained or missing in the country.
In December, the US State Department publicly demanded in a social media post that Nicaragua release all political prisoners. On Saturday, the State Department’s Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs criticized the Ortega regime’s tyranny. Last week, Senator Rick Scott, a Florida Republican who is an ally of President Donald Trump in Congress, said Nicaragua was among the next US targets following the operation in Venezuela.
According to the Nicaraguan newspaper dissident The Confidentialprison authorities indicated that around 30 people had been released to their families on Saturday. Human rights organizations confirmed that at least 20 of those released had already been previously identified as political prisoners, while the remaining cases remain under verification.
