Nicaragua outlaws 1,500 NGOs, including religious charities
The government of Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega on Monday banned 1,500 non-governmental organisations it views as hostile, most of them religious charities. The move was part of an ongoing crackdown on civil society groups seen as opposing Ortega's rule.
Nicaragua on Monday shuttered 1,500 NGOs, bringing to more than 5,000 the number of such entities scrapped in a crackdown on opponents by President Daniel Ortega.
The government has jailed hundreds of critics, real and perceived, since protests against his regime in 2018 that were met with a crackdown the UN said left more than 300 people dead.
Monday’s announcement was the single-largest targeting of NGOs to date, bringing the total to more than 5,100.
Charges against the latest batch of entities, most of them religious, are that they had failed to declare their income, according to a government notice.
They will have their assets seized.
Ortega’s government considers the 2018 protests an attempted coup d’etat promoted by the United States and backed by the religious community.
Last week, it passed a regulation requiring NGOs to work exclusively in “partnership alliances” with state entities.
Other targets have included rotary and chess clubs, sports associations and groupings of small traders, rural people and pensioners, as well as Catholic radio stations and universities.
(AFP)
Read more on FRANCE 24 English
Read also:
Nicaragua considers suspending ties with Vatican following Pope’s ‘dictatorship’ comment
More than 200 freed Nicaraguan anti-government protesters, opposition leaders en route to US
Nicaragua’s main opposition figure Chamorro sentenced to prison
