Nicaragua: São Paulo Forum supports Daniel Ortega’s regime, justifies arrests of opposition hopefuls

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The São Paulo Forum on Wednesday, June 16, released a statement in which it rejects the OAS (Organization of American States) vote and supports the regime of Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua.

According to the forum, which comprises leftist activists and politicians linked to various governments in the region, the arbitrary arrests of opposition leaders, one of the elements supporting the OAS vote, are “false allegations.”

And it adds: “We support the Government and the people of Nicaragua in this moment when its sovereignty and independence are under attack.”

According to a statement signed by its Executive Secretary Monica Valente, the accusation of arbitrary detentions is not supported by the Nicaraguan legal system because “the people involved are under investigation for crimes against the homeland, based on an October 2020 law.”

The Nicaraguan regime, meanwhile, holds opposition presidential hopefuls Cristiana Chamorro, Arturo Cruz, Félix Maradiaga and Juan Sebastián Chamorro García under arrest, accused of “treason against the homeland.”

In this context, the Organization of American States (OAS) “categorically” condemned the arrest of opponents to the government of Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua and called for their “immediate release,” according to a resolution approved on Tuesday.

The decision was passed by 26 of the 34 active members of the regional bloc during an online extraordinary session of the OAS Permanent Council, its executive body. In addition to Nicaragua, Bolivia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines voted against the resolution, while Argentina, Belize, Dominica, Honduras and Mexico abstained.

The OAS Permanent Council resolved to “strongly condemn the arrest, harassment and arbitrary restrictions imposed on the presidential pre-candidates, political parties and independent media, and to call for the immediate release of the presidential pre-candidates and all political prisoners” in Nicaragua, the text stated.

It also expressed its “serious concern” over the fact that the Nicaraguan government has not implemented electoral reforms by May this year to guarantee the transparency of the elections scheduled for November 7, a deadline that had been set by the OAS General Assembly last October.

And it “strongly” urged the Ortega government to implement “with no further delay” all measures in accordance with international standards “in order to promote transparent, free and fair elections in November, including the welcome reception of electoral observers from the OAS and other countries.”

The São Paulo Forum was formed in July 1990, convened by the Workers’ Party of Brazil, to discuss the leftist agenda in the region.

Source: Infobae