Four years after the social outbreak of 2018 in Nicaragua, more than 120 journalists have gone into exile, at least 20 media have been confiscated, there are no printed newspapers circulating in the country and six journalists have received sentences ranging from 7 to 13 years in prison, with fines in the millions. However, the independent Nicaraguan press continues to fight for freedom, both from inside the country and in exile.
Journalists from Nicaragua spoke about challenging working conditions at present, how they have managed to overcome barriers while reporting from Nicaragua and in exile, and how the international community can help, during a panel at the Ibero-American Colloquium on Digital Journalism.
In 2021, 702 cases of abuse of power and violence against the press by the Daniel Ortega regime were recorded, almost double the 360 reported in 2020. Attacks on independent media outlets are in the lead, with 469 reported cases.
The spike of public protests that sometimes turned violent has not been met with enough preparation by Latin American journalists who find themselves in the midst of confrontations, experts say.
The online news portal Voces en Libertad was created to fight censorship imposed by Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega. It allows for collaboration among independent news outlets, existing and emerging, so they can continue informing and telling Nicaragua’s stories.
Journalists from Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Venezuela spoke in a panel during the webinar “Journalism in Times of Polarization and Disinformation in Latin America.” The panel explored press freedom in countries faced with increasingly authoritarian governments and how they’ve been able to continue doing journalism.
In the year leading up to Nicaragua’s presidential election on Nov. 7, President Daniel Ortega implemented increasingly strict limitations on press freedom— a move critics say is part of a years-long campaign to silence Ortega’s political opposition.
A few days ago, and within the framework of the Gabo Festival, one of the most important journalism festivals in Latin America, the cartoonist Pedro X. Molina from Nicaragua received the ‘Recognition of Excellence from the 2021 Gabo Awards.’
Nicaraguan newspaper La Prensa is under investigation and workers are prohibited from entering the building, located in Managua, after the national police raided it on Aug. 13.
Newspaper La Prensa of Nicaragua circulated in print for the last time on Aug. 12, at least temporarily, due to the lack of raw materials, the publication reported. La prensa said it will continue to report through social media and its website.
In one of the most aggressive actions against the independent press in Nicaragua, the country's public prosecutor, close to the administration of President Daniel Ortega, has called at least 16 journalists from the country as witnesses or has named them among those investigated in a case of alleged money laundering.
In a new assault on the Nicaraguan press, this May 20 the government of Daniel Ortega raided for the second time the editorial office of magazine Confidencial, founded by journalist Carlos Fernando Chamorro, at the same time that it arrested different international journalists who they covered the incident. A cameraman for the media outlet remains missing.