Crackdown on Religious Freedom in Nicaragua

U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom Hearing

Crackdown on Religious Freedom in Nicaragua

Tuesday, November 15, 2022
2:00 PM to 3:30 PM ET

Hearing Transcript

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) held a virtual hearing that examined deteriorating conditions for freedom of religion or belief in Nicaragua. The hearing also highlighted opportunities for U.S. policy to support religious actors and communities who are under siege from the government of President Daniel Ortega.

This year, the Nicaraguan government has deepened its pattern of harassment against the Catholic Church, such as subjecting Catholic clergy to direct detention and imprisonment—with some priests facing multiple years in prison on spurious charges. In March, the government expelled the papal nuncio, the Vatican’s chief diplomat in the country, for unexplained reasons. In August, authorities surrounded the home of Bishop Rolando Alvarez—an outspoken critic of the regime—and arrested him and several of his companions. Additionally, the government has turned its wrath on Catholic-affiliated organizations by arbitrarily shutting down charities and expelling their workers, stripping universities of funding and legal status, shutting down news media, and eliminating non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

Witnesses documented religious freedom conditions across Nicaragua under the Ortega regime, discussed current U.S. policy and the enforcement of the RENACER ACT to deter the Ortega regime’s abuses against religious communities, and shared recommendations for the U.S. government to support religious freedom in Nicaragua.

Opening Remarks

• Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL)
  Recorded Remarks
• Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL)
  Recorded Remarks
• Nury Turkel, Chair, USCIRF
  Prepared Remarks
• Frederick A. Davie, Commissioner, USCIRF
  Prepared Remarks

Panel I

• Patrick Ventrell, Director of the Office for Central American Affairs, U.S. Department of State

Panel II

• Manuel Orozco, Director, Migration, Remittances and Development Program, Inter-American Dialogue
  Written Testimony
• Irela Guevara, Program Director, Outreach Aid to the Americas
  Written Testimony
• Christopher Ljungquist, Adviser for Latin America, Office of International Justice and Peace, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
  Written Testimony
• Ryan Berg, Director, Americas Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies
  Written Testimony

Witnesses’ Biographies