Civic Alliance Pressures for International Guarantors
Repression evidences “lack of political will” by the Ortega regime.
By Ivette Mungia (Confidencial)
HAVANA TIMES – The lack of compliance by the government with the agreements reached at the negotiating table, between the Civic Alliance and the regime of Daniel Ortega, pushes the representatives of civil society to demand the presence of international guarantors.
The repression imposed again by the Police to prevent free mobilization this Saturday, evidenced the “lack of political will” of the government, putting at risk the negotiations of recent weeks. Meanwhile, the regime’s representatives blamed the victims for the armed aggression by a Sandinista gunman, who was captured after shooting several demonstrators.
The delegate of the Civic Alliance, Carlos Tunnermann, said that “these international guarantors have to be appointed immediately” and it cannot be postponed as suggested by the representatives of the dictatorship, who during the negotiations ‘maintained the thesis that “further ahead the guarantors will be named.’
In this sense, the scholar warned that this week the negotiations will revolve around compliance with the agreements signed on March 29, because “with the events (repression) on Saturday March 30th it was demonstrated that the political will [to comply] does not exist… so we must insist in the appointment of international guarantors,” he said.
Witnesses must demand an answer
Furthermore, Tunnermann recalled that –although the international guarantors have not been appointed—, the Vatican representative Waldemar Sommertag, and the delegate of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Angel Rosadilla, are witness to the negotiations and have the obligation to demand an answer from the government on what happened during the weekend.
“Our first step will be to meet with them (Sommertag and Rosadilla) to see what they think about what happened, because they were witnesses of the hard work that took several days to reach these agreements,” Tunnermann emphasized.
Meanwhile, representatives of the regime at the negotiating table issued a statement in which they blame the protesters for the repression of which they were victims, and described them as “violent people, hooded and dressed for media opportunities” and blamed the Civic Alliance for what happened.
“These violent individuals, among whom there are members of the so-called Civic Alliance, participating in the negotiating table, display offensive speeches and attitudes, of hatred and discrimination, as well as rejection of the progress of the agreements that have been adopted at the table. The delegation of the government at the negotiating table, demands from the Civic Alliance coherence and consistency with the supreme interest of Nicaraguan families who want and deserve peace,” reads the official statement.
New demonstrations are called
For its part, the Blue and White National Unity urged the presence of international guarantors to follow-up on the agreements reached at the negotiating table and called on citizens to demonstrate again on Tuesday April 2.
“The future of Nicaragua, the freedom of the political prisoners and justice for the victims, cannot be subject to a declaration of good intentions and less coming from a government that has committed crimes against humanity. Today, more than ever, the urgency of the presence of the IACHR (Inter-American Commission on Human Rights) and the MESENI (Special Follow-Up Mechanism for Nicaragua), as the guarantors of the process of total and immediate release of political prisoners is evident, to prevent the continued flagrant violation of human rights in Nicaragua,” the statement said.
In addition, “the National Unity movement is requesting an emergency meeting with the Civic Alliance to evaluate the situation and will continue in permanent supervision and mobilization, to ensure compliance with the demands of the Nicaraguan people until we reach the justice, democracy and freedom demanded, highlights the written statement.