New talks brought new violence, raising the death toll that topped 200 in two months. Ortega says he will democratize Nicaragua, but the opposition accuses him of stalling, and the Catholic Church is making demands, too.
Image: Reuters/O. Rivas
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Representatives from the embattled government of Daniel Ortega and the Civic Alliance opposition resumed talks Monday, one week after they had been suspended. The day ended without a resolution.
The fresh round of dialogue, moderated by the country's influential Catholic bishops, is aimed at stemming the violence that has engulfed the Central American nation over the past two months. However, as the parties met in the capital Managua, violence was reported in numerous Nicaraguan cities, resulting in unconfirmed deaths.
According to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), at least 218 people have died and more than 1,300 have been injured since mid-April in a conflict that began as a protest to proposed state reforms, and morphed into a challenge over Ortega's increasing consolidation of power and growing government repression.
Monday's re-booted talks took on a familiar tone as the Civic Alliance accused the government of trying to keep the country from democratizing.
"What we have seen is that there is no opening, no political will (from the government) on this topic of democratization — a cry for real change from the people of Nicaragua," Daysi George, an opposition representative said. The opposition would like Ortega to resign.
Nicaragua crisis explained
Continued protests have thrown the Central American nation into political disorder. DW looks at the key events that led to the chaos.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Herrera
Daniel Ortega: A Cold War relic
Embattled President Daniel Ortega has been a fixed presence in Nicaraguan politics for decades. Following the fall of longtime dictator Anastasio Somoza, Ortega became president in 1985, heading the leftist Sandinista National Liberation Front. With deep ties to Fidel Castro, he faced US opposition. The Reagan Administration supported a right-wing guerrilla movement aimed at bringing him down.
Image: picture-alliance/ZUMAPRESS/S. Mc Kiernan
Opposition figure and return to power
After losing re-election in 1990, Ortega became a major opposition figure. Ortega finally won the presidency in 2006, riding the wave of leftist presidents in Latin America. He became a close friend and ally of Hugo Chavez. He has since changed tack, allying himself with the country's traditionally right-wing business community and clergy.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/epa/M. Lopez
Nicaraguan government consolidates power
Coupled with changes in electoral law, Ortega has prolonged and cemented his rule. In 2016, he barred international observers and nominated his wife as vice-president. The pair won the election, which was condemned by the opposition and criticized internationally by the US, OAS and the EU.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/R. Arangua
Pension reform attempt
In April 2018, Ortega announced a move to reform Nicaragua's pension system, saying that fiscal changes were needed. The reform sought to impose a 5 percent tax on retiree and disability pensions while increasing social security contributions by up to 22.5 percent. The move unleashed large-scale protests nationwide, which have been the biggest challenge Ortega has faced during his modern tenure.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/A. Zuniga
State repression and clergy mediation
The pension plan was abandoned but protests continued, demanding Ortega's ouster. UN Human Rights experts denounced the state's harsh repression. As the death toll rose, Nicaragua's Catholic Church has demanded that Ortega allow international organizations entry to Nicaragua to help investigate the deaths and tried to set up talks between the opposition and the government.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo
Government and opposition sit down
The opposition, comprised of students and a wide range of civil society groups, sat down with the government for a round of talks on May 16. The Clergy said the talks would be focused on "justice, democratization, and peace." The opposition's main demand: new presidential elections in 2019. The government rejected the demands and talks broke down.
Image: Reuters/J. Cabrera
Catholic Church under fire
Bishops and priests in the strongly Catholic country have played a key role in the crisis. In addition to mediating the peace talks that stalled in June, the bishops have also seconded the call for new elections. Ortega has described the bishops as "coup-plotters" against him, and Catholic leaders have faced threats, harassment and attacks. Protesters have marched in support of the priests.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/I. Ocon
Students as prime targets
University students have been the vanguard of the anti-Ortega movement. Many violent crackdowns have taken place on university campuses, often involving heavy gunfire. While the students say that paramilitaries loyal to Ortega are behind the shootings, the president denies that the armed individuals are under government control. He has also described the protesters as "terrorists" and "criminals."
Image: Image/Agencia EFE/J. Torres
Stalemate and instability
The death toll in four months of violence has risen to over 300 according to human rights activists, though the Ortega government says it's around 200. Protesters continue to take to the streets, describing torture, blacklists and job dismissals as repercussions for their demonstrations. In addition, the UN says over 20,000 people have sought asylum in Costa Rica in a crisis with no end in sight.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/AP Photo/E. Felix
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Meanwhile, Nicaragua's influential bishops continued to ask Ortega for an answer on the proposal they put forth in early June, which calls for new elections in March 2019.
The 72-year-old president, who is in his third consecutive term, has yet to respond publicly. Ortega has said he is willing to allow for a separation of powers that all currently lie in his hands, including the national electoral committee.
Ortega has described the demonstrators as "vandals" and "terrorists" who are trying to destroy the country's long-held peace.
Armed police are "miraculous"
As the opposing sides sat down in the capital, violence and shootings were reported in at least five different cities as armed riot police and paramilitaries tore down barricades put up by civilian demonstrators. El Nuevo Diario said that at least five people had died, including a police officer, though the government has not yet confirmed this number.
However, the vice-president, Rosario Murillo, who is also Ortega's wife, confirmed that the government had ordered police to tear down civilian-built barricades. She also said that the armed operations were "miraculous events" because "they are part of God's work in Nicaragua."
A school also went up in flames during Monday's violenceImage: Getty Images/AFP/M. Recinos
Human rights investigators condemn government
Also present at Monday's talks were representatives from the IAHCR, a part of the Organization of American States, who had arrived in Nicaragua on Sunday evening.
The IACHR hope to track the death toll and assist with investigations into human rights violations, including determining responsibility for the deaths that have taken place during the two-month-long crisis.
"These attacks that took place in the presence of the IACHR show the government's disregard for human rights and its disinterest in re-establishing peace and stability," IACHR members Leiva Alvaro Botero and Fiorella Melzi said.
Two Nicaraguan Catholic Clergy members will meet later this week with Pope Francis in the Vatican to discuss ways to resolve the ongoing crisis.
