Nicaragua, June 21, 2021. On Sunday night, the Nicaraguan police raided the home and arrested journalist Miguel Mora, former director of 100% Noticias. He is accused of alleged crimes against sovereignty. Mora is the 18th opposition leader who has been arbitrarily arrested during the past 30 days. Since May 20, the government of Nicaragua has executed the harshest persecution against journalists, political opponents, civil society leaders, and business executives. During the last year, Mora considered running for president against the dictator, Daniel Ortega.
Mora’s detention was violent, as reported by his wife, Verónica Chavez. «Police broke the door and windows and caused deep trauma to our son Miguelito, a child with disabilities who suffered a seizure due to the raid», said Chávez. She is also a journalist and co-founder of 100% Noticias
📽🌐 @Vero100noticias relata la violenta detención de @MoraMiguel100 y allanamiento por la Policía Sandinista https://t.co/UinEcGYQer pic.twitter.com/XUCrOMNkU3
— NicaraguaActual (@NicaraguaActual) June 21, 2021
This is the second time Miguel Mora is arrested. In December 2018 he and Lucia Pineda, 100% Noticias news editor, were detained without trial for over six months.
Over the weekend, the police also raided the writer Gioconda Belli’s brother’s home. Mr. Humberto Belli was arbitrarily arrested last Thursday. The former director of PEN Nicaragua reported on Twitter the violence of this raid. «My brother’s house was occupied and searched by the police June 17, and last night 10 masked men, who tied my sister-in-law and my niece, ransacked and stole everything they could. They mentioned it was a «second mission».
My brother's house was occupied and searched by the police June 17 and last night 10 masked men who tied my sister in law and my niece,ransacked and stole everything they could.They mentioned it was a "second mission" @nprworld
— Gioconda Belli (@GiocondaBelliP) June 19, 2021
Five presidential pre-candidates have been arrested in the last month. Among them, Cristiana Chamorro Barrios, who is under house arrest since June 2. She chaired the Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation, an organization supporting investigative journalism and monitoring human rights violations. The Ortega regime started an investigation against her for alleged «abusive management, ideological falsehood, and laundering money, goods, and assets.»
As part of the persecution against the Foundation, almost 30 journalists have been summoned to testify. Three independent journalists have been threatened with prosecution for violating the Cyber Crime Law, which punishes what the government considers false news. Also, three journalists are under are house arrest, including the Univision correspondent in Nicaragua, Maria Lilly Delgado.
In addition, the Nicaraguan government has denied entry of the international press. Last Thursday, The New York Times correspondent, Anatoly Kurmanaev, was prevented from entering the country. At the Mexico City Airport, the airline informed the journalist that the authorities in Managua ordered the cancellation of his ticket.