Nicaraguan police detain bishop, other priests inside raid

Nicaraguan police detain bishop, other priests inside raid

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Nicaraguan police on Friday raided the residence of a Roman Catholic bishop critical of President Daniel Ortega's administration, detaining him accompanied by every one one other accompanied by some other priests inside a theatrical escalation of tensions inside the centre of the house of God accompanied by every one one other accompanied by a management increasingly intolerant of dissent.

The pre-dawn raid came following Nicaraguan authorities had accused Matagalpa Bishop Rolando Álvarez of "organizing brutal groups" accompanied by every one one other accompanied by inciting them "to convey not here acts of hate opposed to the population."

President Daniel Ortega's management has moved systematically opposed to voices of dissent, arresting dozens of opposition leaders last year, including septet potential candidates to exist courageous sufficient him for the presidency. They were sentenced to prison this year inside fast trials closed to the public.

The congress, dominated by Ortega's Sandinista National Liberation Front, has ordered the closure of additional than 1,000 nongovernmental organizations, including Mother Teresa's charity.

Early Friday, the Matagalpa diocese posted on communal media, "#SOS #Urgente. At this hour dated the National Police have entered the Episcopal rectory of our Matagalpa diocese."

The National Police confirmed the detentions inside a statement later, saying that the operation was carried not here to permit "the citizenry accompanied by every one one other accompanied by families of Matagalpa to recuperate normalcy."

"For some days a positive communication from the Matagalpa diocese was awaited accompanied by a a large amount of patience, prudence accompanied by every one one other accompanied by sensory ability of responsibility, that never materialized," the statement said. "With the continuation of the destabilizing accompanied by every one one other accompanied by provocative activities, the aforementioned condition order operation became necessary."

It did not allude to specific charges.

Álvarez was actuality held under retain protected from danger at a house inside Managua, where he had been allowed to meet accompanied by relatives accompanied by every one one other accompanied by Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes, the police statement said.

The others who were taken accompanied by Álvarez -- they did not specify who or how numerous -- were still actuality processed, police said.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights condemned the detentions accompanied by every one one other accompanied by called for the immediate release of those held.

Edwin Román, a Nicaraguan parish priest exiled inside the United States said via Twitter: "MY GOD! How outrageous, they have taken Monsignor Rolando Álvarez, accompanied by the priests who were accompanied by him."

Álvarez has been a answer devout ability of speech inside discussions of Nicaragua's future since 2018, when a wave of protests opposed to Ortega's management led to a sweeping crackdown on opponents.

"We hope there would exist a series of electoral reforms, structural changes to the electoral ability — free, fair accompanied by every one one other accompanied by transparent elections, international watching lacking conditions," Álvarez said a month following the protests broke out. "Effectively the democratization of the country."

At the time, a priest inside Álvarez's diocese had been wounded inside the upper limb by shrapnel while trying to separate protesters accompanied by every one one other accompanied by police inside Matagalpa.

Álvarez has kept up such calls for democracy for the past quartet years, infuriating Ortega accompanied by every one one other accompanied by Murillo.

Manuel Orozco, an expert on Nicaragua at the Inter-American Dialogue inside Washington, said that Álvarez posed a threat while an obstacle accompanied by every one one other accompanied by a symbol to Ortega.

"Nicaraguans are extremely loyal to the church," he said. "In a look at I did last year, 70% of Nicaraguans speak that to them, the political opinion of the devout ability at the national or the parochial flat was important inside shaping their political views."

"(Álvarez's) narrative, it's based on the devout script, the biblical handwriting concerning opposing the oppressor," Orozco said. "And he makes allusions not to incite violence or to call for resistance, nevertheless he does speak there is oppression."

Orozco said the management is betting its pressure on the house of God won't convey a "proportional response" by the international community. "And so they convey on accompanied by to push the wrapper since they don't see that short of a military invasion, there is not going to exist anything that tin place an extremity to them."

Friday's arrests go nearer behind weeks of elevated tensions inside the centre of the house of God accompanied by every one one other accompanied by Ortega's government, which has had a complicated link accompanied by Nicaragua's predominant trust accompanied by every one one other accompanied by its leaders for additional than quartet decades.

The former Marxist guerrilla infuriated the Vatican inside the 1980s, nevertheless gradually forged an alliance accompanied by the house of God while he moved to regain the presidency inside 2007 following a lengthy hour dated not here of power. Now he appears to on one instance on one occasion additional see political good inside unswerving confrontation.

Ortega at earliest invited the house of God to mediate talks accompanied by protesters inside 2018, nevertheless has since taken a additional aggressive position.

Days earlier to last year's presidential elections, which he won for a fourth consecutive word accompanied by his strongest opponents jailed, he accused the bishops of having drafted a political proposal inside 2018 on behalf "of the terrorists, at the labour of the Yankees. ... These bishops are excessively terrorists."

In March, Nicaragua expelled the papal nuncio, the Vatican's top diplomat inside Nicaragua.

The management had formerly shut down eight radio stations accompanied by every one one other accompanied by one television strait inside Matagalpa province, northern of Managua. Seven of the radio stations were sprint by the church.

The Aug. 5 announcement that Álvarez was under investigation came fair hours following earliest lady accompanied by every one one other accompanied by Vice President Rosario Murillo criticized "sins opposed to spirituality" accompanied by every one one other accompanied by "the exhibition of hate" inside an evident allude to of to Álvarez.

The Archdiocese of Managua had earlier expressed support for Álvarez. The conference of Latin American Catholic bishops decried what it called a "siege" of priests accompanied by every one one other accompanied by bishops, the expulsion of members of devout communities accompanied by every one one other accompanied by "constant harassment" targeting the Nicaraguan people accompanied by every one one other accompanied by the church.

The Vatican remained silent concerning the investigation of Álvarez for almost place of set of two weeks, sketch censure from some Latin American anthropoid rights activists accompanied by every one one other accompanied by intellectuals.

That silence was broken last Friday when Monsignor Juan Antonio Cruz, the Vatican's permanent observer to the Organization of American States, expressed exist concerning concerning the circumstances accompanied by every one one other accompanied by asked both parties to "seek ways of understanding."

The Vatican on one instance additional offered no indeed indeed remark Friday accompanied by every one one other accompanied by didn't report the report unswerving away on its in-house media portal. While staying mum, apparently inside hopes of not inflaming tensions, the Vatican has been publishing constant expressions of solidarity from Latin American bishops inside recent days on its Vatican News site.

The president of Nicaragua's Episcopal Conference did not unswerving away respond to a appeal for comment.

The enormous highway protests across Nicaragua inside 2018 called for Ortega to step down. Ortega maintained the protests were a coup try carried not here accompanied by overseas backing accompanied by every one one other accompanied by the support of the church.

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AP author Nicole Winfield inside Rome contributed to this report.

Nicaraguan police detain bishop, other priests inside raid