Nicaragua: Call to Take Ortega Minions to the World Court
For the first time, the UN General Assembly hears a report documenting the crimes against humanity committed by the Ortega-Murillo regime.
HAVANA TIMES – The Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua (GHREN) has demanded that the international community hold Nicaragua’s authorities accountable for violating their international obligations and bring them before the International Court of Justice for the “serious and widespread abuses” committed since April 2018. These include forced disappearances, deaths of missing persons, and the illegal denationalization of hundreds of Nicaraguans.
In its first appearance before the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly, GHREN president Jan-Michael Simon denounced that the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo “has fused the State and the (Sandinista) National Liberation Front into a unified machine of repression,” which he called “a trap for human rights.”
“Nicaragua can be brought before the International Court of Justice… The longer the international community delays in acting decisively, the greater the burden will be,” Simon emphasized.
The inclusion of Nicaragua for the first time in the Third Committee’s agenda reflects the growing concern of the international community about the country’s human rights situation, which includes killings, imprisonment, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence, as well as forced disappearances, deportations, and persecution.
According to GHREN, the situation in Nicaragua is “one of the most alarming among the States of Latin America and the Caribbean.”
Regime Fails to Respond to Forced Disappearances
In April 2025, GHREN identified 54 high-ranking Nicaraguan officials by name and position as responsible for serious human rights violations and crimes against humanity.
In August and September 2025, the Group requested that the Ortega regime provide information on the whereabouts of missing persons, as well as the circumstances leading to the deaths of two of them.
“To date, we have not received any response,” Simon stated in his presentation.
The Mechanism for the Recognition of Political Prisoners currently lists at least 73 people detained for political reasons, of whom 33 remain in conditions of forced disappearance.
Under unclear circumstances, in August 2025, the regime handed over the bodies of lawyer Carlos Cárdenas Zepeda and Mauricio Alonso, both of whom had been arbitrarily detained.
“Torture and other ill-treatment,” GHREN stressed, “have been systematically used in police and prison facilities. Women and men of various ages, including the elderly, have been subjected to beatings, electric shocks, mock executions, and sexual violence, among other atrocities.”
GHREN specifically called for expanding legal actions and targeted sanctions against individuals, institutions, and entities identified as responsible for human rights violations and crimes against humanity.
Simon recalled that Nicaragua withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council one day before the presentation of the latest report and suspended its cooperation with the Universal Periodic Review.
Despite this, the Human Rights Council extended GHREN’s mandate until 2027, through a resolution adopted by a broad majority of 29 votes in favor and 4 against.
International Community Increases Pressure
During the debate, several States expressed concern over the deterioration of human rights in Nicaragua. Delegations pointed out the serious violations committed by the Ortega-Murillo regime, including unfair trials, political persecution, and the lack of judicial independence.
The Brazilian delegation urged compliance with international recommendations and warned about the profound negative impact these practices have on the Nicaraguan population.
Canada welcomed the Group’s report and condemned the murder of opposition figure Roberto Samcam. Its representative demanded that Nicaraguans be free from persecution, that political prisoners be released, and that the regime fulfill its international obligations.
Mexico and Uruguay echoed these concerns, calling on the dictatorship to allow the entry of international human rights mechanisms, acknowledge the violations committed, and open a national and inclusive dialogue with all sectors.
In contrast, South Korea, Iran, and Venezuela rejected what they described as “selective” or “biased” mandates and reports against specific countries.
Meanwhile, the European Union, Spain, and Chile denounced the regime’s authoritarian drift and the erosion of the rule of law, condemning torture, arbitrary detentions, and the stripping of nationality from hundreds of people.
Former Costa Rican Presidents Speak Out
Costa Rica’s delegation reiterated its concern over the climate of fear and intimidation faced by journalists and human rights defenders.
Following the debate, eight former presidents of Costa Rica — including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oscar Arias Sanchez — endorsed GHREN’s report and urged the international community, particularly the Costa Rican government, to support its recommendations.
In a joint statement, the former presidents expressed themselves “concerned and deeply dismayed by the content of the report, which confirms the dictatorial and nefarious nature of the current regime in Nicaragua.” They further supported “the need to hold the State of Nicaragua accountable before the International Court of Justice for its refusal to submit to the accountability instruments required by International Law.”
The signatories — Oscar Arias, Rafael Angel Calderon, Jose Maiía Figueres, Miguel Angel Rodriguez, Abel Pacheco, Laura Chinchilla, Luis Guillermo Solís, and Carlos Alvarado — placed special emphasis on the murder of opposition leader Roberto Samcam in June 2025 in Costa Rica, as well as that of Rodolfo Rojas Cordero in Honduras and the attacks against Joao Maldonado in Costa Rica.
According to the former presidents, it is necessary to implement “comprehensive measures to protect Nicaraguan exiles and refugees” living in Costa Rica.
Finally, the Group expressed concern over transnational persecution, noting that it had received “multiple testimonies from individuals who reported being photographed, followed, harassed, approached by strangers, and threatened while abroad.”
First published in Spanish by Confidencial and translated and posted in English by Havana Times.