GENEVA: United Nations experts have urged Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s government to clarify the fate and whereabouts of more than 120 people forcibly disappeared since 2018.
The UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances stated these disappearances followed the violent suppression of anti-government protests.
A wide range of people have gone missing, including those without known political affiliations who were perceived as dissenting from official positions.
The experts declared that everyone trying to defend their rights in Nicaragua is now at risk of being forcibly disappeared.
They stated the disappearances appear to be ordered at the highest levels of authority and are designed to instill fear across society.
The Nicaraguan government did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment about these allegations.
UN experts acknowledged their records account for over 120 missing people but warned the actual number could be significantly higher.
Many families and legal representatives are reportedly too afraid to report disappearances due to fear of reprisals.
The experts lamented receiving no official response from Managua to their requests sent since 2018.
They noted the government has not cooperated despite repeated offers of technical assistance from UN bodies.
The UN group called on Nicaraguan authorities to immediately end arbitrary detentions and investigate all human rights violations.
Another UN group recently reported that Ortega’s government is expanding repression by targeting Nicaraguans living abroad.
Nicaragua has been in continuous political crisis since April 2018 when social protests began.
Police and paramilitaries violently cracked down on these protests, resulting in hundreds of casualties.
Human rights groups estimate the crackdown left approximately 355 people dead and more than 2,000 injured.
The violence also forced hundreds of thousands of Nicaraguans into exile since the crisis began. – Reuters