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☆ Nicaragua Expels 19 Imprisoned Catholic Clerics to Vatican
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( José De Córdoba | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The released clerics include Bishop Rolando Álvarez, who had been in prison for almost a year. Photo: alan putra/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesNicaragua on Sunday released a group of 19 clergymen from prison, including Bishop Rolando Álvarez, the country’s most prominent political prisoner, and expelled them to the Vatican. The government of authoritarian President Daniel Ortega said Sunday that the release was a result of negotiations with the Vatican. The group also includes Bishop Isidoro Mora, 15 priests and two seminarians.

Persons: Bishop Rolando Álvarez, alan putra, Daniel Ortega, Bishop Isidoro Mora Organizations: Agence France, Getty, Sunday, Vatican, Bishop Locations: Nicaragua

Nicaragua Says It Released Bishop Rolando Álvarez, 18 Priests From Jail, Handed Them Over to VaticanThe Nicaraguan government says it has released Bishop Rolando Álvarez and 18 clergy members from jail and handed them over to Vatican authorities

Persons: Rolando Álvarez Locations: Nicaragua, Nicaraguan

The Nicaraguan authorities said on Sunday that they had released 19 clergymen who had been jailed and handed them over to the Vatican, the latest development in the autocratic government’s longstanding persecution of the Roman Catholic Church. Among those set free was Bishop Rolando Álvarez, one of the most prominent critics of the government left in Nicaragua, who had been convicted of treason and sentenced to 26 years in prison last February. Another bishop, Isidoro Mora, 15 priests and two seminarians were also released. Silvio Báez, a Nicaraguan bishop in exile in the United States, celebrated the news in a Sunday Mass in Miami on Sunday, saying that “the criminal Sandinista dictatorship” of President Daniel Ortega “has not been able to overcome the power of God.”The release came after Pope Francis drew attention to the attacks on the church in his New Year’s Day address, telling the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square that he was “following with concern what is happening in Nicaragua, where bishops and priests have been deprived of their freedom.”

Persons: Bishop Rolando Álvarez, Isidoro Mora, Silvio Báez, Daniel Ortega “, Pope Francis, ” Organizations: Roman Catholic Church, Sandinista Locations: Nicaragua, Nicaraguan, United States, Miami, St

☆ Nicaragua sends Catholic priests to Rome after talks with Vatican
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 18 (Reuters) - Nicaragua sent a dozen Catholic priests who had been "processed" by judicial authorities to Rome on Wednesday, the government said, the latest action, a critic said, in a government crackdown on the church. President Daniel Ortega has at times accused Catholic church leaders of seeking to overthrow his government, while judicial authorities have arrested priests and accused some of committing treason, among other crimes. An exiled Nicaraguan researcher who publishes records of what she describes as the persecution of the Catholic Church under Ortega said sending the priests to Rome was a "forced removal." The researcher, Martha Patricia Molina, accused Ortega of seeking to "strangle and disappear" the church with such action. Bishop Rolando Alvarez, perhaps Ortega's most prominent Catholic critic, was this year sentenced to a 26-year jail term on treason charges, but was not among the 12 priests the government sent to Rome.

Persons: Stringer, Daniel Ortega, Ortega, Martha Patricia Molina, Bishop Rolando Alvarez, Valentine Hilaire, David Alire Garcia, Christopher Cushing, Robert Birsel Organizations: Metropolitan Cathedral, REUTERS, Catholic, Thomson Locations: Managua, Nicaragua, Rome, Italy, Nicaraguan, United States

☆ Nicaragua freezes bank accounts of top university led by Jesuits - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Ismael Lopez | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Aug 9 (Reuters) - Nicaraguan authorities froze the bank accounts of the country's top private university, a source from the institution told Reuters, marking the latest move against a Catholic-led institution in an ongoing crackdown by the government. The Jesuit-run Central American University (UCA) is the alma mater of many youth leaders who protested the government of President Daniel Ortega in 2018, which were initially triggered by old-age pension cuts. Earlier on Wednesday, digital news outlet Divergentes reported that UCA officials sent an email to staff and students advising that they were not receiving any payments due to reasons beyond their control. In May, authorities also froze bank accounts belonging to Catholic parishes across the country as prosecutors launched what they called a money laundering investigation. The university had already been singled out for budget cuts and its leaders targeted, including UCA rector and Jesuit priest Jose Idiaquez who last year was barred from returning to Nicaragua after traveling to Mexico.

Persons: Daniel Ortega, Bishop Rolando Alvarez, Ortega, Jose Idiaquez, Ismael Lopez, Sarah Morland, David Alire Garcia, Michael Perry Organizations: Nicaraguan, Reuters, Catholic, Central American University, UCA, Sandinista, Thomson Locations: Nicaragua, Mexico

☆ Insight: Catholic clergy report surveillance, beatings amid Nicaragua's crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( David Alire Garcia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega's five-year campaign against the Catholic church has intensified since February, according to interviews with five priests inside and outside the country. This week's brief release of Nicaraguan Bishop Rolando Alvarez raised hopes for a turning point. The priests describe heavy surveillance of church services by police or civilian members of government-sponsored community councils, especially since Easter. His latest restrictions seem aimed at silencing priests, Erick Diaz, 33, a Nicaraguan priest in exile in Chicago, said. Nine church leaders inside and outside Nicaragua did not respond to interview requests for this story.

Persons: Daniel Ortega's, Nicaraguan Bishop Rolando Alvarez, Mexican Bishop Ramon Castro, Pope Francis, Nicaragua's, Ortega, Rosario Murillo, Bishop Alvarez, Alvarez, Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes, Brenes, Martha Patricia Molina, Molina, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Erick Diaz, David Alire Garcia, Philip Pullella, Ismael Lopez, Suzanne Goldenberg Organizations: MEXICO CITY, Sunday, Nicaraguan, Catholic, Vatican, Reuters, Organization of American, Thomson Locations: MEXICO, Nicaraguan, Managua, Nicaragua, Mexican, Eastern Europe, Matagalpa, Texas, Leon, Vatican, Chicago, Rome, San Jose

☆ Nicaraguan Catholic Bishop Alvarez freed, talks going on - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 4 (Reuters) - Nicaraguan Catholic Bishop Rolando Alvarez was released from prison late on Monday, a diplomatic source said, marking a possible turning point in the government's prolonged crackdown on the Catholic Church. The diplomatic source said on Tuesday that negotiations between the government and the country's Catholic bishops were going on over Alvarez's future, and the prelate was at the Catholic episcopal compound in the capital. The source, who declined to be identified, added that talks included the possibility that the bishop might be expelled from the Central American country or otherwise sent into exile. If the bishop refused to leave the country, he could be returned to prison, the source said. Earlier in the day, the news outlet Confidencial reported that Alvarez had been released on Monday night, citing church and diplomatic sources.

Persons: Nicaraguan Catholic Bishop Rolando Alvarez, Alvarez, Daniel Ortega, Pope Francis, Ortega's, Ismael Lopez, David Alire Garcia, Robert Birsel Organizations: Nicaraguan Catholic, Catholic Church, Central American, Thomson Locations: Nicaraguan, Matagalpa, United States

☆ Brazil's Lula will ask Nicaragua's Ortega to release jailed bishop
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ROME, June 22 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Thursday he would personally lobby Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega to release a bishop who has been imprisoned in the Central American state. Speaking to reporters a day after meeting Pope Francis, Lula said the Nicaraguan president should have "the courage" to recognize that a mistake had been made. "I intend to speak with Daniel Ortega about this to release the bishop. There is no reason for the bishop to be prevented from exercising his function in the Church," Lula said. "The only thing the Church wants is for Nicaragua to free them," Lula said, referring to Alvarez and a number of detained priests.

Persons: Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega, Pope Francis, Lula, Bishop Rolando Alvarez, Ortega, Daniel Ortega, Francis, Alvarez, Alvazez, Philip Pulella, Catarina Demony, Federico Maccioni, Crispian Balmer Organizations: Central, Roman Catholic Church, Thomson Locations: Central American, Nicaraguan, Nicaragua, Latin America, Brazil, United States

☆ Nicaragua accuses Catholic Church of money laundering, freezes accounts
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 27 (Reuters) - Nicaraguan police said on Saturday they are investigating several dioceses of the Catholic Church for money laundering, a day after local media reported that the bank accounts of parishes in the Central American country had been frozen. Investigations "confirmed the unlawful removal of resources from bank accounts that had been ordered by law to be frozen," the police said in a statement. Ortega's government has intensified attacks against the Catholic Church in the wake of 2018 anti-government protests in which some 360 people died after what human rights groups call police repression. The police statement said the bank accounts were linked to religious figures convicted of treason and other crimes, and that the investigations confirmed the funds entered the country irregularly. "People have their bank accounts here, this is how they carried out their work," Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes said in an article posted on news website despacho505.com.

☆ Ahead of Easter, Nicaraguan Catholics press on despite procession ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Ismael Lopez | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ortega's tough stance on the church has been met by a mix of fear and determination among the Central American nation's Catholics. "What's most important is to live our faith," said Maria Flores, who noted that the canceled street procession this Friday - when Christians worldwide mark the crucifixion of Jesus - will be the first time in over four decades she will miss it. Eliseo Nuñez, a Nicaraguan political analyst in exile in neighboring Costa Rica, said government officials banned the processions to quash the prospect of further unrest. In 2005, former Marxist rebel Ortega converted to Catholicism ahead of winning the presidential election the following year. Reporting by Ismael Lopez; Writing by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Sonali PaulOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Nicaragua closes Vatican embassy in Managua, Nicaraguan embassy to Vatican
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( Philip Pullella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] A bishop sprinkles water on the catholic parishioners at the Metropolitan Cathedral, as a suspension of diplomatic ties between Nicaragua and the Vatican has been proposed according to a Nicaragua's foreign ministry statement, in Managua, Nicaragua March 12, 2023. REUTERS/StringerVATICAN CITY, March 12 (Reuters) - Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega has ordered the closure of the Vatican Embassy in Managua and that of the Nicaraguan Embassy to the Vatican in Rome, a senior Vatican source said on Sunday. Nicaragua signalled that the move, which came a few days after Pope Francis compared the Nicaraguan government to a dictatorship, was "a suspension" of diplomatic relations. The Vatican source said that while the closures do not automatically mean a total break of relations between Managua and the Holy See, they are serious steps towards that possibility. A year ago, the Vatican protested to Nicaragua over the effective expulsion of its ambassador, saying the unilateral action was unjustified and incomprehensible.

☆ Nicaragua closes Vatican embassy in Managua, Nicaraguan embassy to Vatican - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( Philip Pullella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

☆ Nicaraguan political prisoners' families seek their release after others freed
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MANAGUA, Feb 14 (Reuters) - The relatives of 35 political prisoners in Nicaragua called for their release on Tuesday, days after 222 others in the same category were freed and expelled to the United States following a surprise deal with Washington. The prisoners, considered political by human rights groups, include 56-year-old anti-government Bishop Rolando Alvarez, one of the Central American country's most influential church leaders. He refused to board the U.S.-bound plane last week and was returned to jail, stripped of his Nicaraguan citizenship and then sentenced to a 26-year term. "Our relatives were on the official list of political prisoners and were not taken into account for release," the Committee of Relatives of Political Prisoners told a news conference. After the prisoner release, President Daniel Ortega said two prisoners refused to board the plane while Washington rejected four others.

☆ Pope voices his concern for imprisoned Nicaraguan bishop
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

VATICAN CITY, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Sunday spoke of his concern over the imprisonment of Nicaraguan Bishop Rolando Alvarez, who was sentenced to more than 26 years in prison in the Latin American country. The Pope's comments about Alvarez, who is a vocal critic of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, were made in his weekly blessing to pilgrims and tourists in St. Peter's Square. Ortega has accused Catholic leaders of attempting to overthrow him after protests that killed about 300 people in 2018. Since then, the government of the former Cold War-era Marxist rebel has expelled Catholic nuns and missionaries. Alvarez was convicted on Friday of treason, undermining national integrity and spreading false news, among other charges.

☆ Nicaraguan Bishop Sentenced to 26 Years in Prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( José De Córdoba | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A Nicaraguan court tried and sentenced a Catholic bishop to a 26-year prison term Friday, just one day after President Daniel Ortega disparaged the cleric for refusing to leave the country with other political prisoners. Judge Octavio Rothschuh read the sentence on government-affiliated media, condemning Msgr. Rolando Álvarez, 56, on charges of undermining the state, spreading false news and resisting authority, among others.

☆ Nicaraguan Catholic bishop sentenced to decades in prison, citizenship stripped
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Ismael Lopez | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Alvarez, bishop of the Matagalpa diocese, was convicted of treason, undermining national integrity and spreading false news, among other charges. During Friday's court hearing it was also announced that he would be fined and stripped of his Nicaraguan citizenship. Originally scheduled for late March, the sentencing of the bishop, widely known by the Catholic honorific monsignor, was sped up without explanation. Rolando Alvarez is irrational and out of control," Silvio Baez, a senior Nicaraguan bishop exiled in Miami, wrote on Twitter after the sentence. A cameraman for a Catholic television channel was also arrested with them.

☆ Nicaraguan Catholic bishop sentenced to prison, stripped of citizenship
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Rolando Alvarez, bishop of the Diocese of Matagalpa and Esteli and critical of the Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, prays at a Catholic church where he is taking refuge alleging he had been targeted by the police, in Managua, Nicaragua May 20, 2022. REUTERS/Maynor ValenzuelaMANAGUA, Feb 10 (Reuters) - A Nicaraguan court sentenced Catholic Bishop Rolando Alvarez to a more than 26-year prison term on Friday, a day after the cleric and critic of President Daniel Ortega declined to be expelled to the United States as part of a prisoner release. Alvarez was convicted on charges of undermining national integrity and spreading false news, and during Friday's court hearing it was also announced that he would be fined and stripped of his Nicaraguan citizenship. Last August, police arrested Alvarez, bishop of the Matagalpa diocese, after dislodging him after he had barricaded himself in church property for several weeks along with other priests. Reporting by Ismael Lopez; Writing by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Anthony EspositoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: Who was freed in Nicaragua's surprise political prisoners release?
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Cristiana Chamorro and Pedro Joaquin ChamorroCristiana Chamorro was placed under house arrest in 2021, just as she was leading Ortega in polls to unseat him as president at elections. Her brother Pedro Joaquin Chamorro was also arrested and jailed the same month, according to newspaper La Prensa. Arturo CruzAn academic who was Nicaragua's ambassador to the United States between 2007 and 2009, Cruz was arrested in 2021 after returning to Managua from Washington. Like Mairena, he was arrested in 2021 over accusations of crimes during the 2018 protests. On Thursday, he declined to board the plane to Washington, preferring to stay home instead, one of only two prisoners to do so.

☆ Detained Nicaraguan Catholic bishop, Ortega critic to face trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MANAGUA, Jan 10 (Reuters) - A prominent Catholic bishop in Nicaragua who has sharply criticized authoritarian President Daniel Ortega will go to trial while under house arrest, a judge ruled on Tuesday, in the latest clamp down on dissent in the country. Human rights organizations accuse Ortega's government of persecuting the Catholic Church. Another prominent cleric, Bishop Silvio Baez, is in exile in the United States along with a number of other priests who have fled. The president has accused Catholic leaders of trying to overthrow him in a "coup" following anti-Ortega street protests that began in 2018. But as tensions have intensified, Ortega officials have expelled Catholic nuns and missionaries and shuttered more than a dozen Catholic radio and television stations.

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