LatinNews Daily - 19 November 2021 |
NICARAGUA: New report ups pressure on Ortega over human rights |
On 18 November, 15 Nicaraguan human rights organisations presented a report which accused President Daniel Ortega of crimes against humanity and called for the installation of international independent fact-finding mission in Nicaragua. Analysis: Ortega has faced similar accusations in the past related to his government’s crackdown on its opponents following unrest which erupted in April 2018. This is the first time that a report, which was endorsed by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the Organisation of American States (OAS), has included the period up to and including the recent November general election which was widely slammed as undemocratic. It is likely to subject the Ortega government, which is already facing the prospect of international isolation, to further condemnation.
Looking Ahead: The government, which in 2018 expelled the OAS Interdisciplinary Group of Independent Experts (GIEI) and the IACHR’s Special Monitoring Mechanism for Nicaragua (Meseni), which was sent to monitor the human rights situation there, is unlikely to agree to the request for the international fact-finding mission. However, the report will pile further pressure on the government over the human rights situation in Nicaragua. |