US restricts visa of at least 100 Nicaraguan officials

The US State Department imposed visa restrictions on 100 more Nicaraguan officials who neglected promises of a secure and prosperous Nicaragua and permitted violent crackdowns, unjust detentions, and the restriction of fundamental freedoms.

In a tweet on 19 August, US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said, "The Nicaraguan people must be heard."

A press statement published by the US State Department on 19 August read, "Today the Department of State is taking additional actions to promote accountability for the Ortega-Murillo regime's relentless attacks on civil liberties by imposing visa restrictions on 100 Nicaraguan municipal officials who participated in efforts to repress civil society organizations, close civic spaces like that of the Universidad Centroamericana, and unjustly detain courageous individuals who support a free civil society, including Bishop Rolando Álvarez."

Where else did the US impose visa restrictions on this year?

Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote in his social media accounts that his office "has taken steps to impose visa restrictions on 100 Nicaraguan officials who restrict Nicaraguans' human rights and undermine democracy."

"We call on the regime to unconditionally and immediately release Bishop Álvarez and all those unjustly detained," Blinken wrote.

Bishop Rolando Álvarez, an outspoken critic of the Nicaraguan government, was jailed by the Ortega regime for supposedly helping anti-government protesters. He was sentenced to 26 years in prison, after he refused to board a plane carrying exiles to the United States in February, reports AP.