A new blow against freedoms and constitutional guarantees has occurred in recent days in Nicaragua, which materializes an evident electoral fraud against the already battered democracy. Through the Public Ministry of the authoritarian regime of Daniel Ortega, on June 1, requested the search of the house and the arrest of the candidate and opposition leader Cristiana Chamorro.

At the end of May that Ministry “opened an investigation against the Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation and, within an absurd period of 36 minutes, summoned the director of the Foundation and candidate for the presidency of Nicaragua, Cristiana Chamorro Barrios. The Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation is being investigated for indications of alleged money laundering in the period 2015-2019, ”as we denounced in the Alert published on May 21.

By maintaining her candidacy as a presidential candidate, Chamorro sent a letter to the Citizens for Freedom Party on June 1 in the afternoon, to learn about the process of registering her candidacy. In a matter of hours, the Ortega regime issued the warrant for the house search and arrest against Cristiana Chamorro. This constitutes an outrage against democracy and a new action by Ortega against democracy, as well as an explicit threat against anyone who dares to oppose the Ortega regime.

Between June 7 and 8, the Ortega regime ordered the arrest of other opposition candidates: Arturo Cruz Sequeira, Félix Maradiaga and Juan Sebastián Chamorro. Both are being investigated “for acts that undermine the independence of the people”, in accordance with the Law for the Defense of the Rights of the People, Independence, Sovereignty and Self-determination for Peace, better known as the “Guillotine Law.” While Cristiana Chamorro is accused of the crimes of abusive management, ideological falsehood in real competition with the crime of laundering money, property and assets, she hopes that in the next few hours she will be taken to the courts of Managua, where she will be subjected to a preliminary hearing.

On the other hand, in the last hours of Tuesday, June 8, the house arrest of our Redlad member and leader Violeta Granera was denounced.

Therefore, the Latin American and Caribbean Network for Democracy (Redlad):

• Calls on the international community to condemn this attack on democracy.
• Requests the release of Cristiana Chamorro, Arturo Cruz, Félix Maradiaga, Juan Sebastián Chamorro and the more than 120 political prisoners of the regime in Nicaragua.
• Stands in solidarity with the opposition and civil society organizations critical of the Nicaraguan government.