-Erosion of democratic norms
-Stifling of civic space
-Violations of fundamental rightsBiden calls on regime to release 'those unjustly imprisoned for speaking out against abuses & clamoring for the right of Nicaraguans to vote in free and fair elections'…@julie_kelly2
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— Titania (@Titania977) November 8, 2021
Statement by President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. on Nicaragua’s Sham Elections
What Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, orchestrated today was a pantomime election that was neither free nor fair, and most certainly not democratic. The arbitrary imprisonment of nearly 40 opposition figures since May, including seven potential presidential candidates, and the blocking of political parties from participation rigged the outcome well before election day. They shuttered independent media, locked up journalists and members of the private sector, and bullied civil society organizations into closing their doors. Long unpopular and now without a democratic mandate, the Ortega and Murillo family now rule Nicaragua as autocrats, no different from the Somoza family that Ortega and the Sandinistas fought four decades ago.
The United States stands in support of the inalienable right to democratic self-determination of the Nicaraguan people, and those of any other country in the hemisphere where popular sovereignty is compromised by the erosion of democratic norms, stifling of civic space, or violations of fundamental rights. The Inter-American Democratic Charter obligates the hemisphere to stand up for the democratic rights of the Nicaraguan people. We call on the Ortega-Murillo regime to take immediate steps to restore democracy in Nicaragua, and to immediately and unconditionally release those unjustly imprisoned for speaking out against abuses and clamoring for the right of Nicaraguans to vote in free and fair elections. Until then, the United States, in close coordination with other members of the international community, will use all diplomatic and economic tools at our disposal to support the people of Nicaragua and hold accountable the Ortega-Murillo government and those that facilitate its abuses.
Biden slams Nicaragua’s ‘sham elections,’ calls Ortegas autocrats:
He called on the Ortega regime to release imprisoned dissidents and said the U.S. and others in the international community would “use all diplomatic and economic tools” to hold the government accountable.
Nicaragua was ranked the 22nd most corrupt country in the world in 2020. Last year, the Nicaraguan newspaper Confidencial reported government entities were responsible for the murders of at least 300 opposition activists. The report also said the government had imprisoned over 700 political opponents.
Nicaragua’s Center for Human Rights reports that 20 people were arrested Saturday night ahead of the election, according to CNN.
h/t Anon Braveheart