The screenshot is a message from Nieves Hernández, a former worker at Radio Hermano of the Diocese of Matagalpa.
“I have never sold out nor will I betray my Church or our priests, and long live Bishop Rolando,” the post reads.
“Blessings, we continue there with our heads held high even if they involve me in something that I have nothing to do with, my conscience always clear, and I continue to support our priests and long live Christ the King, long live our bishop and priests,” Hernández added.
According to local media, another of the “witnesses” on the Nicaraguan dictatorship’s list, Juan Francisco Blandón, has apparently left the country to avoid participating in the trial against Bishop Álvarez.
Nicaraguan lawyer Yader Morazán, a human rights defender exiled in the United States, charged on Twitter that other supposed “witnesses” who will testify against the Catholic bishop have ties to the dictatorship and seek to obtain the favor of the Ortega regime.
Among them, Morazán points to Emiliano Antonio Pérez Castro, noting that “after April he was appointed delegate of the Matagalpa Ministry of Transportation. His sister-in-law is Judge Sheyla Patricia Delgado Medrano.”
“He has wanted to enter the state service for years,” Morazán said.
Another of the witnesses is Josefa Azucena Jirón López, whom the lawyer identified as “secretary of the Matagalpa Ministry of Education.”
He also singled out Elba Marina Rayo, who “works at Radio Insurrección that operates within the FSLN Department,” the ruling Sandinista National Liberation Front.
It was from that department, Morazán said, “that the repression of April 2018 was directed” against the massive demonstrations that demanded the departure of Ortega, who has been continuously in power since Jan. 10, 2007.
“Before, she embraced Bishop Álvarez, and now she will testify against him,” Morazán criticized.
(Story continues below)
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This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
The Catholic News Agency (CNA) Staff are a team of journalists dedicated to reporting news concerning the Catholic Church around the world. Our bureaus are located in Denver, Washington, and Rome. We have sister language agencies in Kenya, Germany, Peru, Brazil, and Italy. CNA is a service of EWTN News. You can contact us at news@catholicna.com with questions.