Nicaraguans turn holiday into peace march

Thousands of Nicaraguans marched, prayed and danced in their capital on Wednesday as they turned a Catholic holiday into a procession calling for peace in their country, which has been gripped by deadly political turmoil since April.

This year’s August 1 celebration of Saint Dominic, a 12th-century Spaniard who founded the Dominican Order and is the patron saint of Managua, came as protesters demanding the removal of President Daniel Ortega clashed with government security forces.

More than 300 people have died in the past three-and-a-half months, rights groups say. Mr Ortega puts the toll at 195.

The US has increased its criticism of the repression in Nicaragua, with the White House on Tuesday saying Mr Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, “are ultimately responsible for the pro-government para-police who have brutalised their own people”.

One marcher, Evilina Reyes, said: “We have a lot to ask of the saint for Nicaragua. We have suffered a lot from so many things that have happened.”

Police, unusually, were absent from the march.

Protesters, particularly students and youths, say they are determined to keep up demonstrations to force Mr Ortega’s resignation, or at least to hold early elections.

The US, the Organisation of American States and the Vatican support those demands. Paramilitaries allied to Mr Ortega assaulted two bishops and a cardinal last month.

But Mr Ortega has dismissed any suggestion that he would leave power before the end of his mandate in early 2022, saying that would invite anarchy.

Last month, he ordered police, backed by armed paramilitaries, to crush protests in Managua and the nearby city of Masaya.

That imposed a degree of calm in the streets but also deepened the people’s resentment against his rule.

On Tuesday, the president said he had taken the country back from “terrorists”.

In interviews with foreign television networks since last week, Mr Ortega insists that “the turmoil is over” and things were getting back to normal.

About 1,900 people have been arrested in the protests, of whom a quarter remain locked up. At least 98 people have been convicted of terrorism and other serious crimes carrying penalties of up to 20 years in prison, the Nicaraguan Centre for Human Rights said.

Dozens of medical staff have been fired from state-run hospitals for treating protesters, and prosecutors said this week they were investigating 10 opposition figures, including student leaders, on suspicion of supporting the protests.

Some took part in church-mediated dialogue with the government, which has stalled since mid-June. Ortega has accused bishops taking part of collaborating with “coup-mongers”.

The UN refugee agency is appealing for neighbouring countries to take in Nicaraguans fleeing the country.

Almost 23,000 people have sought asylum in Costa Rica since April and the southern neighbour was overwhelmed, the agency said.

We have a lot to ask of the saint for Nicaragua. We have suffered a lot from so many things that have happened EVILINA REYES Peach marcher