UN experts point to possible crimes against humanity in Nicaragua — Daily Maverick
UN experts stated that the persecution of political opponents in Nicaragua, including enforced disappearances, torture and arbitrary detention, may constitute crimes against humanity. Daily Maverick reports on the findings of the group of experts.
UN experts' findings
Three experts tasked with investigating the human rights situation in Nicaragua documented imprisonment, torture and politically motivated persecution. According to their findings, this is part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population.
The report states that state institutions, including the police, prosecutor's office and intelligence services, acted in a coordinated manner as part of a campaign to identify, monitor and imprison critics of the authorities. The experts recorded 161 cases of enforced disappearance since April 2018; these disappearances lasted from several days to several years. They also established eight cases of people dying in state custody.
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Intensified persecution
According to the report, after a wave of protests in April 2018, Nicaragua's authorities used arbitrary detention and unfair trials to silence opponents. More than 300 people were killed during the violent suppression of the protests, prompting a mass exodus of Nicaraguans from the country.
Since 2023, the authorities, according to the experts' assessment, have moved to prolonged enforced disappearances and nationwide police raids aimed at suppressing the remnants of dissent. New targets of persecution include members of church communities, Indigenous leaders, as well as former state and military officials. The report also refers to gender-based violence and the humiliation of detained women, including threats of sexual violence.
The experts called on the Nicaraguan government to end the practice of enforced disappearances and provide information on the whereabouts of disappeared people.
