Persecution in Nicaragua: the archbishop of Managua called for the unity of the Church after the wave of arrests of priests

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The archbishop of Managua, Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes, called for the unity of the Catholic Church in Nicaragua on Sunday, following the arrest of at least 13 priests since December 20. “I wanted to prepare a small message for the whole family, a message of encouragement, of hope, above all a message in which we unite strongly in prayer,” said Brenes in the cathedral of Managua.

“At least thirteen priests have been arrested since December 20 in Nicaragua, including a bishop, amid strong tension between the Catholic Church and Daniel Ortega’s regime,” according to religious, humanitarian activists, opponents and national media in the country.

The relationship between the Church and the government deteriorated during the 2018 protests, after Ortega accused religious people of supporting opponents in what he considered an attempted coup d’état.

Bishop Silvio Báez, who left Nicaragua in 2019, denounced the “persecution” against the Church and asked for the solidarity of the bishops of the world and the international community in the face of the arrest of the religious. He urged the international community to be more effective in its pressure against the Nicaraguan regime.

Among those detained are Monsignors Silvio Fonseca, Miguel Mántica, Marcos Díaz, Gerardo Rodríguez, Mykel Monterrey, and Raúl Zamora, who provide religious services in churches in Managua. Half of those arrested have been in prison for over 500 days.

Last Wednesday, the vice president and wife of Daniel Ortega, Rosario Murillo, called “devils” the religious people who, according to her, sow “hatred” in the country.

The Nicaraguan human rights activist Bianca Jagger urged in “Don’t abandon them, they are in danger and they need you SOS,” she wrote.

In the midst of the growing persecution, several Nicaraguan opponents in exile condemned the wave of arrests of priests by the Ortega Police. “The Ortega M. dictatorship intends to dismantle the Catholic Church,” said the legendary denationalized Sandinista guerrilla Dora María Téllez through social media.

The persecution of the Catholic Church by the Nicaraguan regime is raising concerns internationally, and the pressure is mounting for the release of the arrested priests.