It would prove to be the bloodiest day in the whole crisis. Instead, he appeared to be more concerned about the economic impacts of the protests on Nicaragua’s image as a safe and attractive tourist destination. 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The EU expects the Government of Nicaragua to abide by the commitments made in the March 2019 agreements with the opposition to reach a peaceful, negotiated and democratic way out of this crisis. But Nicaragua is not Venezuela, and the crisis unfolding in Nicaragua is largely of Daniel Ortega’s own making. The Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) said 264 people had been killed between the start of the protests and 11 July. Protesters allege that the security forces employ excessive force, using live bullets and sharpshooters against demonstrators. Teaching in the US vs. the rest of the world | Vox. #Nicaragua is sliding into a dangerous spiral of violence & impunity with killings taking place daily. U.S. Efforts to Restore Democracy In the more than two years since the government of Nicaragua launched a brutal crackdown on the country’s citizens, the U.S. continues to exert economic and diplomatic pressure on the repressive and corrupt regime of Daniel Ortega in order to reach the conditions necessary for free and fair elections. -- In Nicaragua, the crisis of democracy deepens with each fresh revelation of bribery, corruption, intimidation, money laundering and murder in high places. Reprisals against those holding dissenting views against the government should not be tolerated. How did recent protests over social security cuts in Nicaragua turn into a nationwide grassroots mobilization against President Daniel Ortega?Â. A number of police officers have been among those killed. NACLA | c/o NYU CLACS, 53 WASHINGTON SQ. Working … The Nicaraguan Red Cross reported that it assisted 435 people, 242 of whom had to be hospitalized. “In particular, it is urgent to implement electoral reforms that will allow the country to be redirected to the democratic … A domestic and international awareness campaign will follow to disseminate the main findings of the … Directly echoing the USAID document, the Democracy International job listing said that the “purpose of the Task Order is ‘to provide rapid, responsive, and relevant analytical and technical assistance that bridge USAID/Nicaragua’s efforts to create the conditions for, and support, a peaceful transition to democracy in Nicaragua. A deadline to finish negotiations had been set for Sunday, but the UK and EU agreed to keep talking. About 500,000 people were homeless, more than 30,000 had been killed, and the economy was in ruins. National human rights organizations have denounced hundreds of disappearances—estimated to be between 400 and 700—and Costa Rican … Nicaragua crisis: how democracy dies in the era of fake news. In the United States, we will work to help increase the diaspora’s participation in social, economic and political spheres of the communities in which we live and work. The administration has refused, however, to allow representatives from the Organization of American States (OAS) to lead the truth commission investigation as activists have demanded, and it is difficult to see how the state can investigate and hold itself accountable for the crimes that it has committed against the people of Nicaragua, especially while government repression continues in various cities throughout the country. But Ortega, a wily political operator who has dismantled Nicaragua’s democracy since returning to power in 2007, was determined to stay – whatever the cost. In Nicaragua, President Daniel Ortega released thousands of inmates because of the threat posed by the virus, but kept political prisoners behind bars, while in … VideoFighting the 'stigma' of dementia in Asian families, Kenya's black market baby trade: A mother's choice. In the 1960s and 1970s, following the Somoza regime’s mishandling of a 1972 earthquake that displaced thousands of people combined with outrage over the government assassination of a respected journalist, thousands of young men and women joined the FSLN to overthrow Somoza in an unlikely revolution that many people, both inside and outside of Nicaragua, never saw coming. With hundreds of thousands taking to the streets, the demands have become much broader than the original protests against changes to the pension system, which were scrapped shortly after the protests began. The government says it has "the duty to defend the security and peace" of all Nicaraguans, including "the right of people, vehicles and goods to move freely throughout the territory". Now COVID-19 is also fueling a crisis for democracy and human rights. Recent legislation passed by Nicaragua’s National Assembly should give us all reason for concern about the worsening political and human rights crisis in Nicaragua. In Nicaragua, we wish to help restore the rule of law, rebuild democratic institutions, and foster inclusive growth. The reforms would increase the amount that employees and employers have to pay into the system, while cutting benefits to elderly pensioners by 5%. Daniel Ortega is an experienced and skillful negotiator who cut his political teeth brokering a truce with the Contras and Miskitu resistance fighters during the civil war in the 1980s. The politics of refusal embodied in the repudiation of party politics signals a radical rethinking of the meanings of Left and Right, liberal, conservative, and revolutionary. Human rights groups inside Nicaragua say the figure is now up to more than 300. Among the dead was a journalist, Angel Gahona, who was shot and killed while live streaming coverage of protests in the Caribbean coastal city of Bluefields on Facebook. Trump and His Friends Think He Was Sent by God to Be President. If history serves as any indication of the outcomes of U.S. involvement in this conflict, NICA would likely tip the scales in favor of a more conservative, pro-U.S., business-friendly administration. And as a country that has experienced democratic change only in recent memory, as President Tsai Ing-wen calls for the support of the international community to help Taiwan defend its democracy, Taiwan should act like the “beacon” as which it sees itself. He called “for an end to every form of violence and to avoid the useless shedding of blood” and urged that political differences be “resolved peacefully and with a sense of responsibility.” Meanwhile, on April 23, the United States Embassy in Managua announced it would cease routine operations and family members of embassy staff were ordered to leave the country. Nicaragua’s government said more than one hundred prisoners arrested during recent anti-government protests were freed (Reuters: HT-CFR) this week under a new amnesty law. They are united in their demand for justice for those killed during the demonstrations. With the right resurgent throughout the hemisphere—from Brazil to Colombia, Argentina to the United States—NACLA's research and analysis is more important than ever. The following May it named a 47-member Council of State, which was to act as an … News From The Left. Back; Countries & Areas. Or for the extensive protests that began in Nicaragua in 2018 and the repressive response of the government. Hurricane Iota made landfall Monday afternoon on Nicaragua’s Caribbean Coast as an extremely dangerous Category 4 storm. The unfolding crisis has taken many, including the government, by surprise. While they are explicitly critical of the administration’s assault on the nation’s democratic institutions, they have also criticized the state for its undermining of the nation’s multicultural constitutional reforms as well as recent attempts by the government to charge a group of young Creole men with Gahona’s murder despite eyewitness accounts that allege he was murdered by local police. In the meantime, activists around the country are planning a national strike, suggesting once again that these protests represent merely the opening salvo in a much longer struggle against the Ortega administration. 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