Daniel Ortega won before the vote

President of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega, All of his fiercest rivals have been remanded in custody, ensuring he is selected for a fourth consecutive term of five years. “A joke”, “a hoax”: Washington and the EU do not have strong enough words to condemn this election, which denies all legitimacy. Journalists for several international media outlets, including CNN and The Washington Post, Was denied access to the territory, and the government denied having independent observers.

A week before the poll, Facebook’s parent company, Meta, announced it had removed 1,000 managed Facebook and Instagram accounts. A “troll factory”To handle the public opinion of the Nicaraguan government.

The beheaded opposition

Its leaders beheaded, detained, or deported I am in opposition More than 100,000 Nicaraguans have organized a demonstration of about a thousand people in San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica, where they have escaped repression. Opponents have only one slogan for voters: “Stay home”.

All five candidates registered to face the head of state are seen by the opposition as mercenaries who have compromised with power. It is a non-voting rate to give an idea of ​​the true adherence of the Nicaraguans to the “ticket” created by 76-year-old Daniel Ortega and his wife Rosario Murillo, 70, vice president since 2017. Fearing weak participation, the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN, former guerrilla regime) organized door-to-door tours to mobilize voters.

Hunting for enemies

Six months before the election, three months after the repression that killed more than 300 protesters among protesters demanding the resignation of Daniel Ortega in the spring of 2018, the hunt for the enemy is raging: 39 politicians, businessmen, farmers, students and journalists have been arrested since June. Of those, seven potential candidates could pose a threat to the current president.

Christiana Zamoro, 67, daughter of former President Violeta Zamoro (1990-1997), was first arrested and placed under house arrest on June 2. Protesters have been accused of undermining national sovereignty, supporting international sanctions against Nicaragua, “treason of the motherland” or “money laundering” under laws passed by parliament at the end of 2020, both in the executive and the judiciary and in elections. Tribunal.

Sanctions adopted by the United States and the European Union

Since the spring of 2018, more than 100,000 Nicaraguans have taken the deported route, while 150 enemies are still behind bars. Nicaraguan researcher Elvira Quadra said deportation could affect the country’s isolation, international investment and funding, social repercussions and growing immigration.

In addition to the new sanctions adopted by the United States and the European Union, relations with even historically friendly countries such as Mexico and Argentina have deteriorated. Cuba, Venezuela and Russia are supporters of the government of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo.