Pope Francis expressed, this Monday (1st), his concern about the arrest of Catholic priests by the Nicaraguan dictator, Daniel Ortega, and asked that “the path of dialogue be always sought” to overcome the problems.
“I follow with concern everything that is happening in Nicaragua, where bishops and priests have been deprived of their freedom. I convey to them, their families and the entire Church in the country my closeness in prayer”, said the Pope from the window of the Apostolic Palace after praying the first Angelus of the year.
Francis, the first Latin American pontiff in history, made an appeal for insistent prayer to the faithful who listened to him in St. Peter's Square, in the Vatican, and to all of God's people for the problems in the country. “We pray today for Nicaragua,” he concluded.
The dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and the Catholic Church are experiencing moments of great tension, marked by the expulsion and arrest of priests, the ban on religious activities and the suspension of their diplomatic relations.
Since December 20, Nicaraguan police have arrested a bishop, 13 priests and two seminarians, according to human rights defenders and opposition leaders in exile.
Neither the government nor the Nicaraguan police confirm or deny the alleged detention of these 16 religious, who join Dom Rolando Álvarez, who on February 10 was sentenced to 26 years and four months in prison, lost his nationality and his rights as a citizen. for the alleged crime of treason.
Last August, Ortega ordered the dissolution of the Society of Jesus in the country, an order to which Pope Francis himself belongs, in addition to expropriating all of its assets.
Months earlier, the pontiff had criticized Ortega's regime, calling it a “gross dictatorship”, following the conviction of Monsignor Álvarez.
On October 18, the Nicaraguan government released 12 priests and sent them to the Vatican following an agreement with the Holy See, although Monsignor Álvarez, who refuses to leave the country, was not among them.
Nicaragua has been going through a crisis since April 2018 that worsened after the November 2021 elections, in which Ortega was re-elected for a fifth term, the fourth consecutive and the second with his wife, Rosario Murillo, as vice president, with his main candidates in prison or exile.
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