“The only intention of the police continues to be to intimidate the population and prohibit any Catholic public manifestations, because they are angry with the people who express their faith,” a resident of the area told Confidencial.
In a video posted on social media, a policeman is seen warning a young man dressed in Cyrenean clothing and carrying a cross. The officer tells him: “You can’t go out with that” because “it’s prohibited.”
The young man questions the ban and exclaims in reference to the town: “This is Catholic Nindirí!”
Aquatic Stations of the Cross canceled
The Nicaraguan newspaper Articulo66 also reported that on Monday of Holy Week the Ortega regime canceled the traditional aquatic Way of the Cross that has been held for more than 40 years in the Diocese of Granada on Lake Nicaragua, also known by the indigenous name Cocibolca.
The Via Crucis is not only a religious tradition but also a tourist activity that contributes to the economy of the local population, especially the boatmen, who are affected by this prohibition.
The Ortega regime then decided to carry out its own version of the Via Crucis on the lake, but without a priest to pray and lead the 14 meditations at the respective stations.
“Without our Church, without faith, without piety nor love, that [is] just any show, a carnival,” one of the locals told Articulo66.
Priest prevented from returning to Nicaragua
Martha Patricia Molina, a Nicaraguan lawyer and researcher, reported on March 31 that a priest was prevented from returning to Nicaragua.
“On Monday the 27th, [the department of] Migration of Nicaragua prevented the entry into the country of the priest Néstor Mendoza, from the Congregation of the Divine Word who did pastoral work in the Palacagüina town parish, Diocese of Estelí,” Molina wrote on Twitter.
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According to the newspaper La Prensa, Nicaraguan Migration told Father Mendoza that his entry into Nicaragua was prohibited, without specifying why.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
Walter Sánchez Silva is a senior writer for ACI Prensa (https://www.aciprensa.com). With more than 15 years of experience, he has reported from important ecclesial events in Europe, Asia and Latin America during the pontificates of Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.
E-mail: walter@aciprensa.com