9.25.2024: Statement on UN Human Rights Council; Nicaragua Budget Focuses on Social Investment

                                                                            Nan McCurdy awarded Nicaraguan citizenship

Nicaragua Solidarity Coalition: Joint Statement by organizations in the Americas, Europe and beyond on the actions by the UN Human Rights Council against Nicaragua and the Nicaraguan people We strongly oppose the actions taken by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in support of US regime-change plans for Nicaragua. We refer specifically to the reports of the Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua (GHREN), released by the UNHRC in March 2023 and February 2024. We call on the UNHRC to rescind these reports and terminate the work of the GHREN. Click here to sign on:  bit.ly/NicaUN3

Nicaragua projects 2025 budget with focus on social investment The Government of Nicaragua projected the general budget for the year 2025 with a focus on public and social investment, which is in line with the national plan to fight poverty and boost human development 2022-2026. The policies for next year’s budget will continue with free education and public health. In addition, it also focuses on maintaining subsidies for urban transportation, electric energy, drinking water, and social housing, among other projects with an impact on the Nicaraguan population.

Nan McCurdy receives Nicaraguan nationality in a solemn ceremony at the Ministry of the Interior "McCurdy has distinguished herself throughout her life in different areas; she has developed as a biologist, ecologist, missionary and journalist. She has been in Nicaragua for 42 years and works with her family in favor of human development, the fight against poverty and the rights of national sovereignty and of the people. In her writings, she has highlighted the anti-imperialist struggle of the people, their progress and victories. Because of her career, work and having established family ties; her husband and children, she is granted nationality for having fulfilled all the legal requirements," highlighted the head of the Ministry of the Interior. Nan McCurdy said, “I am very excited, I feel honored, privileged that after 40 years in Nicaragua, today I am fulfilling a dream. I feel happy, I really thank my colleague Vice President Rosario Murillo and Commander President Daniel Ortega, because I have a lot of appreciation for them since the 80s and I think even more so now that they have achieved so much for the people. We came to live in this country, to accompany a people who were suffering a lot.”

TeleSur: Supreme Court Strips 135 Former Convicts of Their Nicaraguan Nationality These persons, in an agreement with the US government, had been released from prison and expelled to Guatemala on September 5. Among them are U.S.-backed right-wing activists, including members of the evangelical group ‘The Mountain Gate Ministry’ ("Puertas de la Montana,"  see below). The judicial ruling “ordering the loss of Nicaraguan nationality for 135 individuals, convicted of criminal acts that threatened the sovereignty, independence, and self-determination of the Nicaraguan people.” They also incited and promoted “violence, hatred, terrorism, and economic destabilization, disrupting peace, security, and constitutional order,” the ruling stated. The judges also ordered the confiscation of all assets belonging to the convicted individuals “in order to compensate for the severe material and immaterial damages caused by their criminal activities to the population and the country; thus, ensuring effective justice for the victims of these crimes.”

Public Prosecutor Office report on the Puertas de la Montaña case This investigation had its origin in the large movements of money recorded in the bank accounts of the accused Walner Omier Blandón Ochoa and Maricela de Fátima Mejía Ruiz. They are legal representative and financial manager of the Ministry "Puertas de la Montana" branch Nicaragua, which came from the Ministry "Puertas de la Montaña, in the United States." The money they received from abroad (of unknown origin), instead of being used to cover the supposed altruistic purposes of the Ministry Puertas de La Montaña, was diverted to meet the particular interests of the accused, such as the purchase of real estate, luxury vehicles and other sumptuous objects. They used the tax exemptions that the laws of the country confer to non-profit organizations. All of these individuals and legal entities colluded to simulate religious activities and to provide resources to these organizations in order to conceal their operations and thus make it difficult to trace.

John Perry: Is it Nicaragua that is “weaponizing immigration”? Or is it Washington? Claims that Nicaragua is “weaponizing” immigration by allowing free passage of migrants towards the U.S. border have been appearing regularly in the media. The Biden administration accused the Nicaraguan government (the “Ortega-Murillo regime”) of “repressing people and preying on migrants,” imposing new sanctions on those it believed responsible. Is there any basis to these claims?  Behind all such stories is Manuel Orozco of The Inter-American Dialogue, who has been accusing his former country of “weaponizing” immigration since at least early 2023. The Inter-American Dialogue is a think tank funded by the US government, Ford Foundation and others aligned with U.S. foreign policy.

First, it’s true that Nicaragua does allow migrants from different countries to arrive without visas, some of them on charter flights, also allowing them to head north towards the U.S. However, it is not the only country to do so: Brazil does too, and El Salvador gives passage to many foreign nationals, albeit with high visa fees. So do Honduras, Costa Rica and until recently, Panama. Nicaragua is picked out by Washington, and sanctioned, because “weaponizing” immigration is a convenient addition to U.S. criticisms of the Sandinista government. When other countries facilitate the passage of migrants by land, the Biden administration turns a blind eye.  

Events

September 28 webinar: Victory to the Uhuru 3: It’s Not Over! Pack the court for sentencing Nov 25th!

October 13 webinar: “Attempted Coups in Venezuela & Honduras: Their Meaning for Nicaragua & Beyond” REGISTER HERE Or type in bit.ly/NicaOct13 Learn more about recent events in Venezuela and Honduras. The speakers will counter the primary falsehoods and discuss the effect of US-sponsored coups (or the struggles to defeat them) on Nicaragua and other nations. Venezuela suffered an attempted coup over the July 28 presidential election; the violence was quickly ended, but the conflict continues with the US and its allies. In Honduras, President Xiomara Castro terminated the extradition treaty with the US over allegations of “narco-trafficking.” Castro is the current president of CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States); a coup against Honduras could also be considered a coup against CELAC.

Featured speakers: Dr. Francisco Dominguez, senior lecturer at Middlesex University (UK), head of the Research Group on Latin America; National Secretary (UK), Venezuela Solidarity Campaign; co-author of Right-wing Politics in the New Latin America (Zed Books)

Adrienne Pine, Ph.D., Associate Professor (retired), American University; board member of Alliance for Cuba Engagement and Respect (ACERE), the Venezuela Solidarity Network, and US Peace Council; author of many articles and books, including Anatomy of a Coup: An Inquiry into the Embodiment of Militarized Capitalism (PM Press, forthcoming) and Sobrevivir Honduras (Casasola Editores)

October 14: Nicaragua Solidarity Coalition monthly zoom meeting, 2:30 PM ET.  Email NicaraguaSolidarityCoalition@gmail.com in advance to request Zoom access.

Casa Ben Linder 2024 Delegations to Nicaragua:

Email casabenjaminlinder@gmail.com to apply:

November 8-17 2024: Salud & Solidaridad: Hands-On Healthcare in Nicaragua 

February 2025: The Bird Brigade: Birding in Solentiname Archipelago

March 2025: Power & Protagonism: Women in Nicaragua

Nicaragua Solidarity Coalition: nicasolidarity.com 

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