Nicaraguan Journalist Fabiola Tercero Reported Missing
Her house reportedly raided by Daniel Ortega’s Police.
Her disappearance occurs amid a new wave of persecution and harassment against independent press in Nicaragua.
HAVANA TIMES – The Association of Independent Journalists and Communicators of Nicaragua (PCIN) denounced the “disappearance” of journalist Fabiola Tercero. At the same time, they expressed “deep concern and dismay” over a new wave of persecution against men and women of the press over the past two weeks.
“PCIN has tried through various means to obtain information about her (Tercero), but so far it has been impossible to communicate. We are still trying to locate her or get information about her,” warned PCIN in a press release. “We demand that if she has been detained by the police, her personal integrity and rights be respected, and that her detention be publicly announced,” they added.
The press organization also expressed their hope that “the life and integrity of Fabiola and her family are not at risk.”
Promoter of Reading
Tercero is a well-known Nicaraguan journalist and feminist. In 2017, she created “El Rincón de Fabi,” a platform promoting reading to attract new readers in the digital age in Nicaragua through the dynamic of giving away books via bartering or raffling.
Organizations such as the Autonomous Women’s Movement of Nicaragua and the Inter-American Legal Assistance Center for Human Rights have reported that the journalist’s home was raided by the police on July 12th, the day she went missing.
“We demand the freedom of journalist Fabiola Tercero. The Nicaraguan feminist has always spoke clearly and loudly against the human rights violations of the dictatorship. The State has kidnapped her. Where is she?” the Inter-American Legal Assistance Center for Human Rights demanded on their social network.
Persecution Against the Press
PCIN also stated that “disappearances like this, along with the lack of response from the State of Nicaragua, further undermine the democratic principles and fundamental human rights of the country.”
They highlight that “in Nicaragua, independent journalism has been subject to harassment, siege, criminalization, arbitrary detentions, house arrests, forced displacements, exile, denationalization, and even murder by the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo.”
Finally, the press organization called on the international community and human rights organizations to “intensify their support and monitoring of the situation in Nicaragua.”