ACI Prensa Staff, Jul 11, 2023 / 08:00 am
Five years after the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega massacred protesters in the Carazo area of Nicaragua in 2018, the regime has arrested a priest as he was leaving Mass and blocked another priest from returning to the country.
Félix Maradiaga, president of the Foundation for the Freedom of Nicaragua and a former presidential candidate, charged that on Sunday, July 9, Father Fernando Zamora Silva, chancellor of the Diocese of Siuna, was “arbitrarily arrested” in the city of Managua where he was visiting.
The arrest occurred near St. Louis Gonzaga Parish as the priest was leaving a Mass in which he had participated as a guest at a religious celebration presided by Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes. “So far, there are no known charges or specific accusations against the priest,” said the former political prisoner in a note sent from the United States, where he is living in exile.
“Unfortunately, this arbitrary arrest is part of the persecution that the Ortega dictatorship is carrying out against the Catholic Church. Four other priests, including Bishop Rolando Álvarez of the Diocese of Matagalpa, are also arbitrarily detained,” Maradiaga said.