UPR: Nicaraguan State rejects 100 recommendations aimed at resolving the current human rights crisis

UPR: Nicaraguan State rejects 100 recommendations aimed at resolving the current human rights crisis

Geneva, September 20, 2019. United Nations member states participating in the 42nd session of the Human Rights Council adopted the Report of the Working Group with the results of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) for Nicaragua. This Report brings together a total of 259 recommendations to the State of Nicaragua made by other member States in order to help improve the human rights situation in the country, which has faced a serious human rights crisis since April 2018.

We regret that the State of Nicaragua has rejected 124 recommendations, 100 of which  are related to the current crisis and propose the return of human rights mechanisms, freedom for all political prisoners, the full restitution of civil and political rights, the cessation of repression and security guarantees for Nicaraguan exiles to return to the country.

Nicaragua justified this rejection by claiming that the recommendations “do not apply due to lack of substance and distortion of reality.” The Nicaraguan ambassador to the Human Rights Council, Carlos Ernesto Morales, denied the systematic violations of human rights committed by State forces and para-state armed groups, which have been widely documented by national and international human rights organizations such as OHCHR and IACHR. Additionally, he said that “some states issued political speeches, far removed from constructive recommendations, trying to politicize” the UPR.

The Nicaraguan State only accepted 135 recommendations, most of which are related to the rights of children and adolescents, gender violence, inclusive public policies, climate change, combating poverty and inequality, access to education and improving land titling for indigenous and Afro-descendant peoples.

Nicaragua’s lack of commitment

During the session of the Human Rights Council held today in Geneva, a series of diplomatic delegations and civil society organizations expressed their concern over the recommendations rejected by the  State of Nicaragua and the State’s denial of reality, which in turn shows its lack of commitment to restoring the fundamental human rights of its citizens.

“Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Peru remember that the report of the High Commissioner on the situation of human rights in Nicaragua corroborates the lack of accountability; the denial of the victims’ right to the truth, justice and reparation; the reduction of civic space; the violation of the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly; the attack on human rights defenders, journalists and people who are critical of the government; arbitrary detentions and torture. The countries mentioned above urge the Nicaraguan Government to comply with human rights commitments and to consider the implementation of all the recommendations presented (in the UPR),” said the representative of Peru on behalf of a group of South American countries.

Delegations from Egypt, Haiti, India, Iran, Iraq, the Philippines, Russia, Serbia, South Africa and the United Kingdom also participated in the plenary discussion.

The International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH) and its partner organization in Nicaragua, the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (CENIDH), noted: “We are concerned that (the State of Nicaragua) continues to deny lethal violence in the city and the countryside, hiding the serious human rights crisis in the country, trying to give an image of normality that does not correspond to the repression that the population continues to face today. Serious crimes are still in impunity, public demonstrations continue to be repressed and parapolice forces harass, threaten and attack any dissenting voice. We are deeply concerned that the State rejects the numerous recommendations on access for human rights organizations to the country (…) We insist that the State restore the legal status of which [9 civil society organizations] were arbitrarily deprived and the return of their assets as well as ensuring a safe environment for them to carry out their work without reprisals or threats.”

Other civil society organizations that participated in the session were UNICEF, UNFPA, Indigenous Missionary Council, CIVICUS and the International Network for Human Rights (RIDH).

Race and Equality joins the calls to the State of Nicaragua to honor its international commitments in the field of human rights and immediately implement both the accepted recommendations, as well as those that it rejected based on the supposed lack of substance and distortion of reality. Likewise, we urge the State of Nicaragua to return to the dialogue table, ensuring a broad, credible, representative, inclusive and transparent dialogue to achieve a peaceful and democratic solution to the crisis, as recommended in the Universal Periodic Review.

Previous advocacy

The UPR is one of the main tools of the Human Rights Council that allows member states to examine each other on how they are fulfilling their international human rights commitments. These recommendations are essential for Nicaragua to overcome the current situation of serious human rights violations and comply with international obligations acquired through the ratification of international human rights instruments.

On May 15, the State of Nicaragua was evaluated by the UPR in Geneva, and in that session a total of 94 States made recommendations to Nicaragua to help improve the human rights situation in the country.

A month earlier, on April 3, representatives of Nicaraguan civil society participated in the pre-session of the UPR of the UPR, a space in which they presented the various human rights violations committed in the country to inform the delegations that would later evaluate Nicaragua.

This is the third time that Nicaragua has been subjected to the UPR’s scrutiny. In the previous review, which took place in 2014, the State accepted 164 recommendations, but human rights defenders denounced that an important part of those recommendations were not fully implemented.

Civil society from Cuba and Nicaragua will expose human rights violations at the 173rd period of sessions of the IACHR

During the 173rd Period of Sessions of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to be held from September 23 to October 2 in Washington, DC; the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) will participate in public hearings alongside multiple Cuban and Nicaraguan civil society organizations that will denounce the serious situation faced by activists, human rights defenders and independent journalists in their respective countries due to the repression, violence and harassment exercised by the regimes of Cuba and Nicaragua.

We invite you to join the public hearings through the IACHR website and our social media.

Diseno-sin-titulo

Monday, September 23, 2019

Hearing: “Serious human rights violations in Cuba”

Despite the adoption of a new Cuban Constitution, the fundamental rights of the Cuban people continue to be violated because of arbitrary and repressive practices that deter Cubans from truly and effectively accessing their rights. Throughout this public hearing, civil society organizations will expose the worrying situation of human rights violations on the island and the ways in which the Cuban state censors its citizens and curtails their freedoms. In addition, the organizations will present to the Inter-American Commission the multiple forms of violence that the Cuban state uses to suppress voices that dissent against the regime.

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Hearing: “Implementation of Protective Precautionary Measures in Favor of Independent Journalists in Nicaragua”

Given that the systematic violation of the right to freedom of expression and of the press has deepened in Nicaragua since the protests of April 18, 2018, this public hearing seeks to demand the immediate fulfillment of the precautionary measures granted by the IACHR to the media figures and independent journalists who are censored, harassed, arrested and repressed by the State of Nicaragua. To date, the state has not taken the necessary measures so that the beneficiaries can carry out their journalistic work without being subjected to acts of intimidation, threats or other acts of violence in the exercise of their work.

The National Press Club invites to the event: “Global Voices: Journalism Under Threat in Nicaragua”

On Wednesday, September 25 at 6:30 p.m., the NPC’s International Correspondents Committee (ICC) and Press Freedom Team invites you to join an event on media suppression in Nicaragua. Fresh from testifying at the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights (IACHR), a delegation of four Nicaraguan journalists – three of whom remain in exile – will discuss the country’s recent descent into violence and repression.

In April 2018, proposed changes to Nicaragua’s social security system sparked a series of street protests. Heavy-handed moves to repress the protests had the opposite effect, fanning the flames of dissent and leading to calls for President Daniel Ortega to step down. As journalists moved in to cover the growing opposition movement, many found themselves directly in the firing line – facing arrest by police and violence at the hands of pro-government militias.

The delegation of Nicaraguan journalists will talk about their experiences of reporting from the front lines, the tactics the Ortega government has used to brand the press as part of the opposition movement, the current state of the country and their hopes for the future. The International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights is supporting each to attend the IACHR hearings and this special media event.

Panelists include:

Carlos Fernando Chamorro is founder and editor of Confidencial. Carlos is currently in exile in Costa Rica following a police raid on Confidencial in December 2018. Police confiscated documents, phones, computers, and TV cameras in a bid to disrupt the magazine’s reporting. Carlos Fernando fled the country in January this year amid threats against him.

Lucía Pineda Ubau is news director at 100% Noticias. Lucía was arrested in December last year, accused of “incitement and conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism and incitement of hate crimes.” She was released in June under the country’s controversial amnesty law and is now living in exile in Costa Rica.

Aníbal Toruño, who is currently in exile in Miami, is director and owner of Radio Darío. On April 20, 2018, pro-government mobs set fire to Radio Dario, badly damaging the station and forcing them to move to another location. Since then their offices have been raided several times by the Nicaraguan police.

Sergio León, owner and director of La Costeñisima, has remained in Nicaragua and has faced constant harassment, being detained by the Nicaraguan police on multiple occasions.

About the moderator:

Nicaraguan-born Maria Peña is a Digital Reporter for Telemundo, where she covers all issues affecting Hispanics, including immigration, trade, education, housing, voting, political empowerment, foreign policy, and, most recently, domestic terrorism at the border. She has worked in Washington journalism for more than 30 years but also travels abroad to cover major international stories such as Obama’s historic 2016 trip to Cuba. She is a frequent guest on major networks including Voice of America, Univision, CBC, CNN, and CGTN America. In 2017, she was named among El Tiempo Latino´s “100 Influential Latinos.” Maria is a member of the National Press Club.

 

More info and registration to the event here

Live Broadcast here

 

We condemn aggresion against transgender activist in Nicaragua and demand an exhaustive investigation

The International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) and the Colombian organization Caribe Afirmativo (Affirmative Caribbean) condemn the attack against Ludwika Vega, a trans woman who serves as coordinator of the Asociación Nicaragüense de Transgeneras (ANIT – Transgender Association of Nicaragua), and demand that authorities carry out a thorough investigation of the incident.

According to information received by Race and Equality, two men riding a motorcycle arrived at ANIT’s office in Managua around 8:00pm on Tuesday, September 10th and found Ludwika alone there. The men struck her with a stone, knocking out teeth and drawing blood. They proceeded to attack her with a sharp object, causing her five injuries: one to her chest, three to her back and one to her side. The perpetrators also stole Ludwika’s laptop computer and handbag.

After the attack, Ludwika was taken to a hospital and is now in recovery from her injuries.

ANIT is an organization that works to promote and defend the rights of transgender women through educational programs on human rights and through advocacy work in various fora.

Ludwika has been a crucial ally to Caribe Afirmativo during the organization’s Enterezas II [“strength of character”] program, which investigates gender-based violence and hate crimes against lesbian and bisexual women. She has built networks with lesbian, bisexual and trans women throughout civil society in order to carry out trainings, workshops and community organizing to demand human rights in Nicaragua.

Race & Equality and Caribe Afirmativo insist upon a thorough investigation of this crime, including investigation into the possibility that the crime was motivated by Ludwika and ANIT’s work in favor of human rights for trans women.

Impunity for attacks against trans women leads to further violence; Nicaraguan authorities must inform the community of the investigation’s findings and sanction the perpetrators to prevent such a cycle.

Human rights crisis in Nicaragua has not been resolved, according to High Commissioner for Human Rights, IACHR and activists

Geneva, September 10, 2019. The serious socio-political and human rights crisis that Nicaragua has suffered since April 2018 was exposed in all its magnitude this week during the 42nd session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland. On Tuesday, High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet presented an updated report on the situation in the country and various diplomatic delegations expressed their support to the people of the Nicaragua. A delegation of activists, journalists, former political prisoners, defenders of Nicaraguan human rights and international human rights organizations also attended the session.

The Bachelet Report

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, communicated in her report that serious human rights violations have continued in Nicaragua, especially violations of the rights to peaceful assembly, to freedom of expression and association, to personal freedom, to not be subjected to torture or inhuman conditions of detention, to a fair trial and to obtain reparations.

“The institutional response to human rights violations has been insufficient,” Bachelet said in her speech, adding that the justice system in Nicaragua has not guaranteed accountability for these serious violations. Consequently, she stressed the importance of human rights organizations being able to return to the country to monitor the human rights situation.

The report gives eight recommendations to the State of Nicaragua, including: to “urgently” resume the dialogue between the government and the Civic Alliance for Justice and Democracy; to guarantee the freedoms of peaceful assembly, expression and association; to restore the legal status of the nine civil society organizations and the media that were sanctioned and outlawed; and to establish a broad plan of action oriented towards accountability.

IACHR and international delegations endorse the report

The Rapporteur for Nicaragua of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), Antonia Urrejola, said that the crisis in Nicaragua “keeps the country in a climate of serious institutional deterioration and complete closure of democratic spaces for the exercise of human rights.”

According to the Commissioner, “the de facto installation of a state of exception persists and this keeps public liberties suspended or seriously limited; arbitrary detentions also persist, as do the exile of journalists and social leaders, a lack of effective judicial protection for victims, impunity, reports of murders of people identified as government opponents, reports of cases that could be described as forced disappearances and the reports of sexual attacks and torture.”

Various diplomatic delegations also supported the OHCHR report, including: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Chile, Colombia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, the European Union, France, Georgia, Germany, Iceland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Spain, Switzerland, South Africa and Uruguay. Likewise, the organizations CIVICUS, Red Local, Human Rights Watch, FIDH, Amnesty International, CitizenGo and Hivos all welcomed the report and urged the State to accept its recommendations.

Nicaraguan state denies human rights violations

The Vice Chancellor of Nicaragua, Valdrack Jaentscke, denied the human rights violations committed by the State of Nicaragua from the beginning of the crisis in April 2018 to the present, despite the evidence presented by Bachelet and Urrejola.

Instead, he discredited the report and defended the government position that in Nicaragua there is full freedom of association, no journalist has been persecuted for exercising his or her work, no human defenders have been repressed, no arbitrary detentions have taken place and that there is no torture or cruel and inhuman treatment in prisons.

The State of Nicaragua was supported by the delegations of Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Russia, Syria and Venezuela, countries that requested the UN not to intervene in internal affairs.

Advocacy

One day before the presentation of the human rights report on Nicaragua, the event “Fighting impunity and strengthening accountability: violations of human rights in Nicaragua” was held in Geneva, organized by the Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality) with the purpose of bringing the Nicaragua’s reality closer to the Human Rights Council’s proceedings.

The panel was made up of Nicaraguan ex-political prisoners Lucia Pineda, Victoria Obando and Edwin Carcache, the UN Special Rapporteur on Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association, Clément Voulé and the first vice president of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons Deprived of Liberty, Joel Hernández.

Lucía Pineda, News Director of 100% Noticias, explained how the Nicaraguan government continues to harass, threaten and repress independent communicators and journalists in her country, and how the offices of the 100% Noticias and the digital outlet Confidencial as well as the television programs Esta Noche and Esta Semana, directed by Carlos Fernando Chamorro, are still occupied by state forces.

Edwin Carcache, student leader and member of the Civic Alliance, said that at least 126 people who were arrested for their participation in citizen protests are still being held, and regretted that these political prisoners are experiencing the same conditions of torture and inhuman treatment that he suffered in the cells of the Jorge Navarro Penitentiary System, also known as “La Modelo.”

Victoria Obando, on the other hand, highlighted how the LGBTQ community has been an active part of citizen demonstrations and therefore has suffered the onslaught of repression through imprisonment or exile. “We have records of people from our community who are exiled in at least 13 countries, where their living conditions are severely affected in ways that intersect with the visibility of their sexual orientation or gender identity,” Obando explained.

Support of the Universal System and Inter-American System

The UN Special Rapporteur on Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association, Clément Voulé, agreed with Bachelet’s report and reiterated that the human rights of Nicaraguan citizens continue to be violated.

Voulé stated that the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and to freedom of association are fundamental and necessary to guarantee other rights. He therefore asked the State of Nicaragua to return legal status to NGOs that were outlawed, since they play a vital role in the protection and fulfillment of human rights and the democratic life of society.

“The Nicaraguan government should not see them as a threat, but as a means of dialogue in which they should participate,” he added, highlighting that the beginning of any transitional justice process involves allowing independent organizations to support the victims and document facts. In addition, he stressed the great interest of his office in visiting the country to establish a dialogue with the Nicaraguan government, although he has not received a response from the State.

Finally, IACHR vice-president Joel Hernández also stressed that the Commission is willing to deploy their missions again in Nicaragua, although they have not received a response to their repeated requests. “The democratic spaces have been closed and to date they have not been opened. Nicaragua does not have a will to solve this crisis,” Hernández said.

Statement of civil society organizations regarding the coming report about the situation in Nicaragua from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

August 26th, 2019. As UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet prepares to present her report on Nicaragua on September 10th, in compliance with the March 21st Human Rights Council resolution “Promotion and protection of human rights in Nicaragua” (A/HRC/40/L.8), civil society organizations and human rights defenders wish to express our concerns regarding ongoing repression, harassment, and threats against those defending democracy, justice, and human rights in Nicaragua.

For the last 16 months, Nicaragua has suffered a human rights crisis provoked by brutal repression from state forces and pro-government armed groups seeking to quell massive country-wide protests.

According to data from the Interamerican Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) at least 328 people died, including 29 children and adolescents, and more than 2,000 were injured as a result of this violence. Thousands more were arrested arbitrarily, and hundreds were criminalized for exercising their right to protest. The majority of these political prisoners were released under the recent Amnesty Law, which was approved unilaterally by National Assembly members from the ruling FSLN party. However, the Amnesty Law perpetuates impunity by ruling out investigation into suspected crimes committed against protestors.

Furthermore, the government continues to repress the population by imprisoning citizens and violating the due processes to which they are entitled under Nicaraguan law. As a result, some 120 political prisoners remain incarcerated as of July 28th according to the the registry maintained by the Civic Alliance for Justice and Democracy.

The second attempt at dialogue between the Civic Alliance (made up of various opposition groups) and the government, which began in February this year, had achieved some formal agreements, but none of these agreements were honored or implemented by the government. After months of impasse caused by this non-compliance, the government made a unilateral decision to terminate negotiations on July 30th.

The facts on the ground make clear that there is no will among the Nicaraguan authorities to guarantee truth, justice, and reparation for the victims of repression and their families; nor are there guarantees that the government will return to good-faith dialogues that respect the previous agreements.

Given these facts, we recommend that the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights should:

  1. Demand the immediate release of all prisoners arrested in relation to the protests beginning in April 2018 and of all those being charged for alleged common crimes in retaliation for their continued participation in civic demonstrations. Furthermore, to demand the full restoration of these released persons’ rights and liberties along with the closure of their cases, cancelation of their convictions, and reparation of their confiscated goods.
  2. Urge the State of Nicaragua to cease the repression and persecution of young people, human rights defenders, student leaders, women, journalists, LGBTQ persons, and ex-prisoners who continue to be harassed and threatened with detention or prosecution. Furthermore, to demand respect for the rights of children and adolescents to safety and protection.
  3. Demand that the State of Nicaragua disarm and dismantle pro-government armed groups that threaten and attack Nicaraguans.
  4. Make use of all mechanisms within the Universal System of Human Rights to give special and urgent attention to the human rights of Nicaraguans currently seeking refuge in Costa Rica and other countries.
  5. Demand that the State of Nicaragua respect the right to pursue human rights work, restore legal recognition to civil society organizations whose status was revoked (CENIDH, CISAS, CINCO, IEEPP, Hagamos Democracia, Popol Na, IPADE, ILLS, and Fundación del Río), and return these organizations’ confiscated property
  6. Insist upon the return of confiscated property and the restoration of suspended licenses to news outlets 100% Noticias, Confidencial, and Esta Noche and insist that these outlets be allowed to carry out their work without any obstacles or retaliation.
  7. Offer the OHCHR’s good offices for ensuring the return of human rights mechanisms (IACHR, OHCHR, GIEI) to Nicaragua. In this area, the work of the GIEI (Interdisciplinary Group of Independent Experts), including its proposal of creating a Special Prosecutor’s Office and an Integral Plan of Reparations for the victims, was very positive.
  8. Request that Nicaragua revoke the Amnesty Law, which is contrary to the American Convention on Human Rights; make meaningful reforms to the national judicial system; and ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
  9. Demand that the State of Nicaragua immediately implement protection for indigenous and Afro-descendant people who are being harassed and killed in different regions of the country and underline that the State must urgently protect these communities from violent attacks and land invasions.

We also request that States’ permanent missions to the United Nations:

  1. Call upon the Nicaraguan government to return to inclusive national dialogues that will end the ongoing repression and establish concrete terms for a democratic transition.
  2. Insist that as part of these dialogues, the State of Nicaragua take up a sincere electoral reform process that will result in legislation guaranteeing free and fair elections scheduled for November 2021.
  3. Firmly back the demands of the Nicaraguan people for truth, justice, reparation, and guarantees of non-repetition.
  4. Urge the State of Nicaragua to accept the recommendations resulting from the Universal Periodic Review process and to implement those recommendations classified as urgent, including the disarmament of paramilitary forces.

Finally, we call upon the United Nations Human Rights Council to:

  1. Renew the mandate of the resolution “Promotion and protection of human rights in Nicaragua,” so that the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights can continue to monitor the human rights situation in the country.

Signed by:

NICARAGUAN ORGANIZATIONS

  • – Centro Nicaragüense de Derechos Humanos, CENIDH.
  • – Instituto para el Desarrollo y la Democracia, IPADE.
  • – Unión de Presos y Presas políticos de Nicaragua, UPPN.
  • – Centro por la Justicia y Derechos Humanos de la Costa Atlántica de Nicaragua, CEJUDHCAN.
  • – Fundación Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, FVBCH.
  • – Canal 100% Noticias
  • – Movimiento Autónomo de Mujeres, MAM.
  • – Articulación de Movimientos Sociales.
  • – Centro de Investigaciones de la Comunicación, CINCO.
  • – Centro de Información y Servicios de Asesoría en Salud, CISAS.
  • – Foro de Educación y Desarrollo Humano de la Iniciativa por Nicaragua.
  • – Iniciativa Nicaragüense de Defensoras, IN-Defensoras.
  • – Fundación Puntos de Encuentro.
  • – Red de Mujeres de Matagalpa.
  • – Red de Mujeres Contra la Violencia.
  • – Colectivo de Mujeres de Matagalpa.
  • – Feministas Madrid por Nicaragua.
  • – Asociación Colectivo de Mujeres 8 de Marzo.
  • – Movimiento de Jóvenes Feministas Las Malcriadas.
  • – Articulación Feminista de Nicaragua.
  • – Movimiento Feminista de Nicaragua.
  • – Programa Feminista La Corriente.
  • – Mujeral en Acción.
  • – Grupo Lésbico Feminista Artemisa.
  • – Fundación Coordinadora de ONG’s que trabajan por los derechos de la Niñez, CODENI.
  • – SOS Nicaragua UK.
  • – Morada Feminista Nicaragua UK.
  • – SOS Nicaragua- Sverige.
  • – Resistencia Civil Nicaraguense.
  • – Proyecto Lechuza.
  • – Popol Na.
  • – Movimiento por Nicaragua.
  • – Anides.
  • – Campaña 28 de septiembre por la Despenalización del Aborto – Punto focal Nicaragua.

LATIN AMERICAN ORGANIZATIONS

  • – Comité de América Latina y el Caribe para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos de las Mujeres.
  • – Iniciativa Mesoamericana de Mujeres Defensoras de Derechos Humanos, IM-Defensoras.
  • – Fundación Para el Debido Proceso, DPLF.
  • – Unidad de Protección a Defensoras y Defensores de Derechos Humanos -Guatemala, UDEFEGUA.
  • – Fondo de Acción Urgente – América Latina y el Caribe.
  • – Red Latinoamericana y del Caribe por la Democracia, REDLAD.

INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

  • – Institute about Race, Equality and Human Rights, Race&Equality.
  • – International Service for Human Rights, ISHR.
  • – International Network of Human Rights, RIDH.
  • – Just Associates, JASS.
  • – CIVICUS.
  • – Asociation France-Nicaragua.
  • – Freedom House.

In the midst of the crisis in Nicaragua, human rights of indigenous and Afro-descendants continue to be violated

Washington, D.C. August 14th, 2019. Repression and extrajudicial killings that occurred in several cities in Nicaragua since April 2018, especially in the urban areas of the Pacific and central zone of Nicaragua, were behaviors already known by the indigenous and Afro-descendant communities of the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua. “We have already lived through these forms of repression in our communities since 2015” although under different motivations, affirms the president of the Center for Justice and Human Rights of Nicaragua’s Atlantic Coast (CEJUDHCAN, for its initials in Spanish), Lottie Cunningham.

In the midst of the socio-political and human rights crisis that Nicaragua is going through, the rights of indigenous and Afro-descendant people continue to be predominantly violated in two ways: for the violation of their self-determination and autonomy, and for the lack of a title-clearing process for communal properties, denounced the lawyer and activist from CEJUDHCAN, who is deeply concerned about the situation of impunity and the lack of institutional guarantees for these populations.

Self determination

In the North and South Atlantic of Nicaragua, each community is autonomous and has its own form of organization. Indigenous people are organized based on their customs and traditions, so there are communal and territorial authorities that must be chosen according to a legally regulated procedure. But the interference of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN, for its initials in Spanish) has generated frequent conflicts in these communities.

“This has come to create many problems, it has come to confront communities, because the party interference has created parallel governments, it creates some figures that are not part of the traditional authority,” Cunningham explains.

According to the activist, the Sandinista Leadership Committees (CLS, for its initials in Spanish), also existing in the Pacific and urban areas of the country, are in fact monitoring mechanisms, and do not fulfill their role as traditional authorities. The Government is responsible for delivering, after each election, a certificate of appointment as an authority, but those who are chosen according to the tradition are denied that certificate. It is the people who abide the party mandates those who get the certificate.

“They are creating a fractionation of the indigenous family, of the indigenous community. And in those conflicts, there have even been injured people, a bloodshed,” Cunningham laments. One of the most recent cases occurred in the Kamla community, municipality of Bilwi, North Caribbean of Nicaragua, when on June 26 this year a group of Sandinista sympathizers attacked the communal leader and municipal councilor Marcela Foster, causing the loss of her left eye and a fracture in one of her arms.

“We are now concerned about the omission of public officials, the Police, the Public Prosecutor’s Office that do not act, and as impunity has continued, this may worsen,” Cunningham warned. “In the indigenous communities the siege and criminalization has increased and we are very afraid…”, she added.

Lack of a title-clearing process

The Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua is a multi-ethnic, pluricultural and multilingual region where nearly 508,000 people with origins from the Mískitu, Sumu/Mayangnas, Rama and Afro-descendant (Creoles and Garífunas) communities live. As a result of a ruling of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in 2005, the State of Nicaragua approved Law 445, which established a process of demarcation and titling of these communities’ lands.

Under this law, between 2007 and 2016, 23 territories benefiting 304 indigenous and Afro-descendant communities were demarcated, but the title-clearing process has not been carried out, which is the State guarantee to the indigenous people of “the effective use and enjoyment of their titled territories when faced with their occupation by third parties or settlers.”

Due to state ineffectiveness, the lack of a title-clearing process has begun to have negative effects for the security of indigenous people and for their use of natural resources. “The settlers are armed, they have come to the nearest perimeters of the community, usurping, occupying land,” says Cunningham, who recounts: “When we go to communal assemblies, it’s sad, women cry because they tell you how they can’t go to collect their food, they can’t go fishing, they can’t go collect their traditional medicine, because they don’t live from a grocery store or a pharmacy, they live from the forest.”

There have also been reports of settlers who kidnap indigenous people to warn them not to exceed the limits they have arbitrarily defined, or to force women to raise the bean crop. “There are missing indigenous people, we have indigenous people who have died, atrociously killed, who have get their heads and hands cut off, their eyes taken out…”, thus describing the extreme violence that has characterized some recent events.

Cunningham said that the police do not go to the communal areas, and rather it is the leaders who demand the title-clearing process of the communities that have been arrested and criminalized. “Instead of advancing in the title-clearing process, right now we are seeing (how activists are facing) common crime trials, we know that (crimes) are not true, there is no evidence, because we know that people and we know that those are also selective actions”, Cunningham points out.

According to Cunningham, the authorities allow these land seizures to “stay in power, because the indigenous people hardly vote to the national parties.” In addition, they have also granted concessions to gold and timber companies without territorial governments having endorsed them, as mandated by the International Labour Organisation Convention No. 169 on indigenous and tribal peoples.

“Due to the social crisis of 2018, a massive invasion of settlers has entered to our communities. And the State of Nicaragua knows it,” laments Cunningham.

Statement

Race and Equality calls on the State of Nicaragua to protect the rights of indigenous and Afro-descendant people, particularly to guarantee respect for collective property, their autonomy to choose their authorities as well as security conditions that protect their lives and personal integrity from violence that afflicts them today.

We urge the State of Nicaragua to accept the recommendations of the Universal Periodic Review regarding these peoples in the next session of adoption of the Report of the Working Group of the Human Rights Council and its prompt implementation.

Fotos de Flickr. 

Nicaraguan refugees living in Mexico and Central America held a summit in Costa Rica

San José, Costa Rica. From July 29th to the 31st, a group of LGBTI Nicaraguan refugees living in Mexico and Central America held a summit in San José, Costa Rica to promote discussion about the human rights of LGBTI refugees. In particular, the summit addressed violations and vulnerabilities resulting from workplace and housing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

In the course of the summit, which was organized by the Mesa LGBTI de Nicaragua with the support of Race and Equality, participants reiterated that the circumstances which caused them to leave Nicaragua, the precarity of their situation in their host country, and experiences of discrimination have all combined to harm their emotional and mental health. This reality has not yet been identified and addressed in the international response to Nicaragua’s crisis, despite the fact that depression has emerged as a common factor among refugees, as in the case of a young gay refugee who died of suicide in Costa Rica in July.

The majority of LGBTI refugees have been forced to leave Nicaragua due to threats over social media, political persecution, arbitrary detention, and in many cases grave violations of their human rights to liberty and to personal, bodily, and mental integrity. The summit highlighted both the importance of ensuring accountability for these violations in Nicaragua and the urgent need to support the integration of refugees in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico.

Rights impacts

Attendees shared their experiences of fleeing Nicaragua, often with only days or hours to prepare and sometimes with as little as $40 on hand. Many suffer the emotional impacts of not being able to say goodbye to their friends and family. Refugees are also exposed to security risks on the journey itself: while traveling on irregular and informal routes, some refugees, particularly LGBTI women, reported threats to and violations of their sexual and bodily integrity.

Attendees also discussed their diverse experiences in the receiving countries. While the Costa Rican government has recognized its duty under international norms to integrate the sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) of refugees into its response, other countries such as Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala have treated SOGI as irrelevant, causing friction between public officials and refugees.

All attendees, however, made clear that SOGI factors have had important impacts on their experiences, particularly in their daily efforts to claim and exercise human rights such as the right to housing. Verbal threats and harassment, spying and surveillance from neighbors, and denial of housing opportunities are daily occurrences for LGBTI refugees, particularly trans women and persons with non-binary gender expressions. This situation is compounded when locals refuse to rent to Nicaraguans for reasons of xenophobia.

Refugees have suffered similar violations of the right to work. In addition to the natural difficulty of finding work outside one’s own country, many trans women report that employers have forced them to change their gender expression in order to obtain employment. Many younger refugees have not yet finished their schooling, adding an additional difficulty to their search for employment. Together, these factors of precarity have led to “survival sex work” among some Nicaraguan refugees, who report that this work exposes them to sexual health risks.

Despite this adverse context, all attendees shared experiences of mutual support that they identify as crucial for their survival, including offers to share living space, initiatives to create common funds for refugees’ expenses, and support for each other’s gender identities and sexual orientation.  These experiences demonstrate the need to maintain a network of LGBTI refugees and to articulate a strategy that demands rights for refugees in the receiving countries, recognizes the existence of a diaspora at the regional level, and seeks to allow refugees to return safely to Nicaragua with their human rights assured.

Future steps

To pursue this strategy, Race and Equality will combine our efforts with the Mesa LGBTIQ de Nicaragua and its chapter in Costa Rica to seek an audience with the Interamerican Commission of Human Rights regarding LGBTI refugees in the region. We also hope to continue working with our counterparts in Nicaragua and with Nicaraguans across the region to monitor their situation and pursue human rights documentation that will support our joint advocacy for their human rights.

Crisis in Nicaragua: extrajudicial killings, detentions and persecution continue

Washington, D.C. July 30th, 2019. A resurgence of the human rights crisis that Nicaragua has suffered since April 2018 has taken place in recent weeks with the occurrence of extrajudicial killings and arbitrary detentions committed by police and parastatal armed groups, especially in rural areas, as well as the persecution of human rights defenders and journalists.

Extrajudicial killings

The selective persecution of peasants and social leaders in rural areas is not new, since the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (CENIDH, for its initials in Spanish) has documented its occurrence since 2007. However, the executive director of CENIDH, Marlin Sierra, points out that this type of case has been a continuation of the actions that were carried out in previous years.

“The pattern they are using is the same: these are people who were killed on the roads, with guns. Although they claim they were common criminals, militarization remains in the countryside,” says Sierra, clarifying that most of the killings are of people who were opponents of the government before the crisis or who joined the demonstrations once the crisis broke out in April last year.

From July 2018 to June 2019, CENIDH has documented 21 of these murders in the city of Jinotega, in the north of the country, specifically in the communities of Wiwilí, El Cua and Pantasma.

Consistent with the CENIDH data, a report by the Nicaraguan sociologist Elvira Cuadra, interviewed by La Prensa, revealed that from October 2018 until July 15 of this year “it is possible to observe an increase in murders in rural areas; a good part of the victims are social and political leaders linked to the civic movement or opposition political parties.”

During the time documented by Cuadra, 29 selective murders were committed by paramilitary groups with the complacency of the Police. In 28 of those cases, a gun was used to commit the crime.

A case that is not included in this list is that of José Alejandro Martínez, age 27, since he managed to survive the armed attack. Martínez, who was a political prisoner and was released from prison four months ago, was shot dead near his home in Wiwilí, allegedly by a paramilitary member. After the attack, doctors told Martinez that he would not be able to walk again.

Another worrying case, although it did not occur in a rural area, was the murder of Bryan Murillo López, a 22-year-old man who was killed by police officers inside his own home in the city of León. Police violently broke in Murillo’s house at 4:30 am on Wednesday, July 17. Murillo died from three shots in the chest. The relatives of the young man presume that there may be political reasons behind the attack, since he participated in the protests and marches that took place last year.

In the same event, as a result of police violence, two other members of the same family were injured: Kenner Murillo López and his brother-in-law Javier Cortez Castillo. The Police released a statement that referred to the victims as criminals, however, the mothers of the youths presented evidence that the police themselves had no records for any of the supposed cases.

Arbitrary detentions

Another form of repression that has continued for 15 months since the beginning of the human rights crisis is the arbitrary detention of both protesters and former political prisoners.

One of the most recent cases is that of Jaime Enrique Navarrete, who was kidnapped in front of his house by police officers on Wednesday, July 24, and who is now being prosecuted for the crimes of possession of narcotics and illegal carrying of firearms. According to local media, Navarrete was brought before the judge with a broken nose and bruises all over his body due to the beatings he received in police custody.

Edwin Altamirano, another political prisoner, was also arrested on Thursday, July 17, at his home in Managua. According to his relatives, police officers entered the house with violence and without a warrant and took him away without explaining the reason for his arrest.

Two other young men, Kevin Orlando López, from Estelí, and Brayan Cruz Calderón, from Managua, both former political prisoners, were captured in June and July and are being charged with common crimes such as drug possession and robbery with intimidation.

This type of capture has also been committed against citizens publicly known as opponents of the government in different cities of the country, although in several cases releases have been reported a couple of days after the arbitrary detentions.

“We are receiving daily reports of threats, not only of aggression or surveillance, but direct threats of death,” explains Marlin Sierra, who has received complaints from across the country, especially from the cities of Matagalpa, Jinotega, Estelí and Managua.

Persecution of human rights defenders

Human rights defenders and lawyers of political prisoners have also been the target of persecution and intimidation by police groups.

The latest case occurred on Friday, July 26, with the arrest of the lawyer of the Permanent Commission of Human Rights (CPDH, for its initials in Spanish), María Oviedo, who was arrested by police officers in the city of Masaya. Police accused her of “obstruction of functions” in court. After two days of being detained, the court granted alternate measures to Oviedo, so that she will face the penal process from outside of prison.

In Managua, on July 15, about 7 patrol cars full of riot agents surrounded the facilities of the CPDH after a group of young people conducted a ‘flash’ protest of 5 minutes. CPDH is the only non-governmental human rights organization still authorized by law to provide public aid, and last month received provisional measures from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, along with the CENIDH.

“The surveillance and persecution and the smear campaign against us are permanent,” denounced the executive director of CENIDH, Marlin Sierra, who believes that “the State ignores completely the disposition of the Court.”

Only one day after the incident at the CPDH, on July 16, the group of lawyers known as “People Defenders” denounced that about six police patrols were surrounding the access roads to their facilities. On July 20, the Police sent the car of the lawyer Yonarquis Martínez, defender of several political prisoners, to the vehicle depot without explaining reasons. A couple of days later, the lawyer managed to recover her vehicle and driver’s license.

The crisis faced by human rights defenders has also deepened due to the legal status of the nine NGOs arbitrarily deprived of legal status not being re-established after seven months; nor were their assets returned. The threat and the intention to criminalize them and bring them to court is always present, as has been demonstrated in the case of the CPDH lawyer, María Oviedo.

Independent journalism continues under regime violence

Journalist Juan Carlos Bow, from Confidencial, was injured in his right hand while interviewing the relative of a person detained at the protest. He was shot with a marble pellet by the police agents that repressed a demonstration occurring on July 25 in the city of Managua.

The website of radio La Costeñísima was subject to a cyber attack with the purpose of blocking it, while the facilities of 100% News and Confidencial, Esta Semana, Esta Noche and Niú continue to be held by the police.

The main print media also continue to face obstacles to retrieve their raw materials from customs. La Prensa newspaper has failed to clear its paper and raw materials that have been arbitrarily retained for 48 weeks.

Statement

The facts described above show that the Nicaraguan crisis has worsened and that its lethal effects on people who are identified as opponents of the regime do not cease.

Taking all this into account, Race and Equality makes a vehement call to the State of Nicaragua to fulfill its international commitments in the field of human rights and to respect the provisions of the Declaration on Defenders. In addition, we demand that the State comply with the provisional measures granted by the Inter-American Court in favor of CENIDH and CPDH.

We also demand that the State guarantee thorough and independent investigations into extrajudicial killings and other acts of lethal violence in which police and state agents have participated.

Similarly, we urge the Organization of American States (OAS) to comply with the urgency of the case by creating the High Level Commission provided for in the Resolution approved by the General Assembly in Medellin, Colombia, to seek a peaceful solution to the serious crisis that has overwhelmed Nicaragua since April 2018.

Foto: Jorge Mejía Peralta on Flickr. 

Venezuela, Nicaragua and LGBTI issues: key points of the 41st session of the UN Human Rights Council

Geneva, July 16th 2019.  A report on the human rights situation in Venezuela presented by the High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet and an update on the state of human rights in Nicaragua presented by Deputy High Commissioner Kate Gilmore, as well as the mandate renewal of the UN independent expert on sexual orientation and gender identity, were all key agenda items during the 41st session of the UN Human Rights Council.

The 41st session of the Human Rights Council, which took place between June 24 and July 12 at the UN headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, was marked by the Latin American agenda. In her opening speech, Bachelet expressed concern about the setbacks experienced in Latin America that affect important achievements made by victims, human rights defenders and political leaders in terms of reconciliation and transitional justice in recent decades.

The High Commissioner warned: “today we are witnessing a worrisome trend of denial of the facts, even extending to the passage of laws intended to undo the progress made in seeking justice.”

As an example, she cited the recent approval of the Amnesty Law in Nicaragua and the attempts of Guatemala and El Salvador to pass similar laws. Faced with this situation, she urged “these and all other countries not to adopt regulations that prevent serious human rights violations from being prosecuted and duly punished.” She also said that “accountability, with fair trials, protects societies from future radicalisation and violence.”

The Human Rights Council is the intergovernmental body of the United Nations that is responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights. It has the competence to discuss all human rights thematic issues and to call for change through recommendations. This body also has the function of empowering special procedures and carrying out the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). It meets three times a year: in February, June and September.

About Venezuela

At the request of the Human Rights Council, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) prepared a report on the human rights situation in Venezuela that was presented at this session.

The High Commissioner began the presentation by commenting on her recent visit to Venezuela, where she was able to meet with various sectors of society, which she understands is undoubtedly a sign of the Venezuelan authorities to commit to a constructive dialogue. She also noted that the report cannot ignore that the rule of law in Venezuela has been “seriously damaged” in recent years. Today, the rights to freedom of expression, to peaceful assembly and to participate in public life all entail threats against the life and physical integrity of those who exercise them.

The report details the gradual militarization of state institutions during the last decade. The pro-government armed groups known as colectivos have contributed to the deterioration and have managed to impose a social order of generalized repression. The OHCHR documented at least 66 deaths during the protests carried out from January to May 2019, of which 52 are extrajudicial executions directly attributable to Government security forces or to the colectivos. “In the previous year, the government of Venezuela registered 5,287 deaths due to ‘resistance to authority’ and between January 1st and May 19th of this year, another 1,569 people were killed, according to the government’s own statistics. Others sources suggest that the figures could be much higher.”

The High Commissioner expressed concern about the excessive and lethal use of force, saying that such force should be classified as extrajudicial execution and requires an investigation aimed at condemning the perpetrators and guaranteeing the non-repetition of similar acts. The report notes, however, that most of the victims have not yet had access to justice or adequate reparation.

Meanwhile, the people of Venezuela continue to face an economic crisis that is seriously affecting the fulfillment of economic, social and cultural rights. This crisis has also been exacerbated by the recent economic sanctions that are affecting the ability of the State to guarantee the population’s access to medical services and the right to food. Many public services such as the healthcare system have collapsed, the High Commissioner stressed in her speech, stating that the lack of basic medicines is having serious consequences, even causing deaths; also, the lack of contraceptive methods is forcing many women to continue pregnancies in circumstances of extreme precarity by forcing them to take care of children who they will not be able to feed. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), by March 2018, around seven million Venezuelan people, a quarter of the total population, will need humanitarian assistance.

Hunger and poverty have forced many to flee in conditions of extreme vulnerability. The protection of their human rights, says the High Commissioner, is a matter of extreme urgency. Bachelet highlighted the situation of indigenous people in Venezuela, which is also extremely worrisome, given the loss of their ancestral territories and natural resources, militarization, the effects of mining and the lack of adequate access to water and food.

About Nicaragua

The Deputy High Commissioner presented the update on the human rights situation in Nicaragua. This intervention was held as part of the resolution of the Human Rights Council for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in Nicaragua (Resolution A/HRC/40/ L8) approved in April 2019, which also provides for the presentation of a report in the following Council session in September of this year.

In her oral intervention, Deputy High Commissioner Kate Gilmore stressed that one year after the violent repression of demonstrations throughout the country, which killed more than 300 people, injured 2,000 and put more than 70,000 people in exile, human rights violations committed during that crisis remain unresolved. Peaceful protest and dissent continue to be repressed.

She also noted that, despite the Nicaraguan authorities’ claim that they have freed all those arrested in the context of the protests, more than 80 people could still be in custody under severe conditions of detention. The OHCHR has even received reports of torture and mistreatment. Gilmore urged the release of all persons arbitrarily detained for their participation in the protests or for expressing dissenting or critical opinions, including those who are still under alternative measures to incarceration, and reiterated the call to the Nicaraguan authorities to carry out immediate, impartial and effective investigations into the allegations of torture and violent acts in custody.

Regarding the Amnesty Law and the Law of Integral Attention to Victims, she emphasized that nether guarantees the right of victims to truth and reparation and that they were adopted without sufficient consultation with civil society or victims’ organizations. One of the most critical points of her speech was the reference to the work of the OHCHR, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Interdisciplinary Group of Independent Experts (GIEI, for its initials in Spanish) of the Organization of American States. Although these agencies have managed to document serious human rights violations, the Government continues to deny the responsibility of the state or its professional agents. The National Police has continued to systematically deny authorization for civil society meetings and to arbitrarily arrest people who attempt to demonstrate, with episodes of excessive use of force. The Deputy High Commissioner also showed concern for human rights defenders, community leaders, media journalists and civil society organizations who continue to be the target of attacks, threats, harassment and constant surveillance.

She ended her speech by calling on the authorities to participate in a genuine, meaningful and inclusive dialogue to address the legitimate demands of justice and reparation and to undertake institutional and electoral reforms. She recalled her office’s willingness to support the Nicaraguan Government in the fulfillment of its international obligations regarding human rights.

About the renewal of the UN Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity (IE SOGI)

Victor Madrigal, an independent expert on SOGI, began his speech by recalling that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall protests and that his mandate is a necessary response to the abuse that the LGBT community throughout the world continues to suffer. He shared some data collected in a recent report that presented violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. For example, 60% of bisexual women have been victims of rape, physical violence and/or harassment by an intimate partner in their lives; trans people have a life expectancy of 35 years; and half of LGBT students have been victims of harassment.

The campaign behind the renewal of this mandate was an example of coordination and shared effort between civil society organizations and diplomatic missions that endorsed the protection of the human rights of LGBT people. Special mention should be made to the Latin American region since Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico and Uruguay were the countries that promoted the resolution to renew the mandate, which more than 50 co-sponsoring countries later joined. Their negotiating skills and constructive spirit earned them the gratitude of several council members. The resolution had to face ten hostile amendments led by Pakistan and seconded by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation with the exception of Albania and Tunisia, which were all rejected. The mandate was renewed with 27 votes in favor, 7 abstentions and 12 votes against, among which there were no Latin American countries. Only Cuba abstained in the voting to reject these hostile amendments, but at last voted in favor of the renewal.

The call to the Council for the renewal of the Independent Expert of the UN on SOGI was supported by 1,312 non-governmental organizations from 174 States and territories. After the voting, the renewal of the mandate filled the room and the corridors with an emotion and a joy that perhaps can be captured through the words of gratitude of the activist Andrea Ayala: “all of us here work for people whose names or skin color we don’t know, all we know is that they need us and here we will continue to work together.”

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