Human Rights Committee Considers Report of Nicaragua in the Absence of a Delegation, Experts Ask about the Treatment of Protesters and Reported Fraudulent Practices in Past Elections

The Human Rights Committee this afternoon considered the fourth periodic report of Nicaragua in the absence of a delegation.  Committee Experts raised issues concerning the treatment of protesters and reported fraudulent practices in past elections.

Photini Pazartzis, Committee Chairperson, said that the Committee had received no response from Nicaragua to any of its communications regarding this review.  The State party had not sent a delegation, so the Committee would proceed to consider the State party’s report in the absence of a delegation.  The Committee regretted this unfortunate situation, which was not conducive to conducting a meaningful review of Nicaragua’s report. 

A Committee Expert said that there were reports of the excessive use of force by law enforcement officials, particularly during social protests that began in April 2018.  Pro-Government armed groups had, with the approval of the State, carried out attacks on demonstrators and illegal detentions.  The Office of the High Commissioner had recorded hundreds of deaths in the context of the protests that remained unpunished.  What measures were in place to prosecute the law enforcement officials and armed groups responsible for those deaths?  How many police officers had been convicted and punished on charges of excessive use of force?

Another Committee Expert asked about measures taken to investigate fraudulent practices reported in past elections.  Law 1070 had annulled political competition for the 2021 general elections, allowing people related to the Government to access positions of power permanently.  Between 2018 and 2021, the political candidacies of 11 women and 39 men were cancelled and three political parties were disqualified.  There were 2,031 reports of anomalies and political violence in the 2021 general elections.  The Expert repeated the Human Rights Council’s call for the Government to approve electoral and institutional reforms with the aim of guaranteeing free and fair elections.

Ms. Pazartzis, in concluding remarks, said that it seemed that the situation of human rights in Nicaragua had seriously deteriorated.  There was a clamp down on journalists and protestors, prolonged arrests of political opponents, a lack of independence of the judiciary, and a lack of cooperation with international institutions.  The Amnesty Law, which granted State agents immunity concerning their actions in response to protests in 2018 and 2019, was particularly concerning.  In closing, Ms. Pazartzis repeated her call on the State party to cooperate with the Committee, the treaty body system and all international institutions, with a view to improving the human rights situation of the citizens of Nicaragua.

The Human Rights Committee’s one hundred and thirty-sixth session is being held from 10 October to 4 November.  All the documents relating to the Committee’s work, including reports submitted by States parties, can be found on the session’s webpage.  Meeting summary releases can be found here.  The webcast of the Committee’s public meetings can be accessed via the UN Web TV webpage.

The Committee will next meet in public at 3 p.m. on Thursday, 20 October, to begin its consideration of the eight periodic report of the Russian Federation ( CCPR/C/RUS/8 ).

Report

The Committee has before it the fourth periodic report of Nicaragua (CCPR/C/NIC/4).

Opening Statement

PHOTINI PAZARTZIS, Committee Chairperson, said that the Committee had received no response from Nicaragua to any of its communications regarding this review.  The State party had not sent a delegation, so the Committee would proceed to consider the State party’s report in the absence of a delegation.  The Committee regretted this unfortunate situation, which was not conducive to conducting a meaningful review of Nicaragua’s report.  This situation was even more concerning as Nicaragua had not engaged with any treaty body where it was scheduled to report since 2021.  Ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights entailed the obligation to submit reports on the measures adopted to give effect to the rights under the Covenant and on the progress made in the implementation of these obligations.  The General Assembly had noted that the full engagement of States parties in interactive dialogues with the human rights treaty bodies was a key component of the periodic review process.  The Committee regretted the absence of the State party and wished to reaffirm that it remained open to cooperation in the future.

Questions by Committee Experts

A Committee Expert called on the State party to ratify the first Optional Protocol to the Covenant to allow individuals to submit complaints to the Committee.  How many judgements by courts had cited the Covenant?  Was judicial training provided on the Covenant?

Since April 2018, when a socio-political and human rights crisis erupted, Nicaragua seemed to have adopted a policy of non-collaboration with United Nations human rights mechanisms.  In addition to not participating in the reviews of treaty bodies, it had also not complied with most of the recommendations made by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and had rejected the establishment of the Group of Experts on the situation in the State by the Human Rights Council.  The Committee Expert was concerned by Nicaragua’s rejection of human rights, international humanitarian law and international criminal law.

The Committee Expert was concerned at the downgrading of the Procurator for the Defence of Human Rights for not complying with the Paris Principles.  The Office of the Human Rights Ombudsman had not been able to oppose legislation in conflict with international human rights law issued by the National Assembly, calling into question the independence of the institution.  What measures were in place to guarantee the independence of these institutions?

Another Committee Expert asked for information on measures adopted to prevent violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, particularly for transgender persons in detention.  There was no reference to such discrimination in the Constitution, nor was there a general law against discrimination or hate crimes.  There was also a lack of data on violence and discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons.  How many complaints of violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons had been received, and how many investigations into such cases had been carried out?  What reparations were granted to victims?

Indigenous and Afro-descendant peoples continued to be victims of structural discrimination, reflected in poverty rates, poor living conditions, and institutional discrimination, and expressed in the lack of protection of these peoples’ rights to their lands and territories.  The State party had implemented a policy of dispossessing indigenous territories and promoting infrastructure projects without the consent of the affected peoples.  Most indigenous and Afro-descendant Governments had been supplanted by parallel Governments imposed by the Central Government.  There had been systematic and repeated armed attacks perpetrated against defenceless communities, including massacres, causing forced displacement of up to 3,000 people. 

There was very little political participation of Afro-descendants at the national and regional levels in the branches of Government and public institutions.  Integrated measures were needed to promote equal opportunities and access to services for people of African descent and indigenous peoples, and to increase their participation in politics.

The Expert said the report indicated that Nicaragua had strengthened special protection measures for women who were victims of violence, criminalised femicide and increased its punishment, created specialised courts and police stations for women and children, and resolved criminal cases regarding violence against women.  However, the specialised court had since been eliminated, and the crime of femicide was restricted to couple relationships.  Perpetrators of violence against women were subjected to family counselling rather than legal sanctions, encouraging impunity.  There were no State programmes for providing psycho-social support to victims, and the Government had not earmarked funds for the establishment of shelters for women who were victims of violence.  There had been 71 femicides in 2021. 

The Expert called on the State party to make it easier for victims to submit complaints; ensure that all cases of gender-based violence were investigated and perpetrators prosecuted; ensure that victims and their families had access to protection measures; and to develop and implement training for police officers, prosecutors and judges on women's rights and gender-based violence. 

One Committee Expert expressed concern that the State party had not taken any action to respond to the Committee’s recommendations regarding the removal of the total ban on abortion.  Women had been denied medical assistance because they were pregnant, even at risk to their lives.  Under the Criminal Code, women and girls who had abortions were sentenced to between one to four years' imprisonment.  The ban on abortion had led to such procedures being performed clandestinely, endangering the lives and health of women and girls.

A Committee Expert said that there were reports of the excessive use of force by law enforcement officials, particularly during social protests that began in April 2018.  Pro-Government armed groups had, with the approval of the State, carried out attacks on demonstrators and illegal detentions.  The Office of the High Commissioner had recorded hundreds of deaths in the context of the protests that remained unpunished.  What measures were in place to prosecute the law enforcement officials and armed groups responsible for those deaths?  How many police officers had been investigated, prosecuted, convicted and punished on charges of excessive use of force?

Torture and ill treatment reportedly occurred in the aftermath of the protests that began in April 2018 in various prisons, including the death of a detainee in May 2019 in La Modelo prison.  There were also cases of sexual and gender-based violence occurring in prisons.  What investigations and criminal proceedings had been carried out in response to these situations, and what reparations were provided to victims?  The Expert asked for statistics on overcrowding in prisons, and measures implemented to reduce overcrowding.

Another Committee Expert asked whether the Truth, Justice and Peace Commission was still in operation.

The Amnesty Law, which granted amnesty to all State agents who acted against protesters from April 2018 to June 2019, was not compatible with the Covenant.  Had there been progress on the appeals filed by civil society to the Supreme Court challenging the constitutionality of this law?

One Committee Expert said that legislation did not grant victims of crimes access to compensation or guarantees of non-repetition.  In cases of torture, victims could not seek civil redress without a final conviction in criminal proceedings.

A Committee Expert said that judges were appointed by the National Assembly.  What measures were in place to ensure the independence of the judiciary.  What training was provided for judges and prosecutors?  Fifty persons had been sentenced to imprisonment for up to 13 years for crimes of undermining national integrity, spreading false news, and money laundering in relation to the 2021 general elections.  On appeal, only one of the convictions had been overturned and others were pending appeal.  This suggested a lack of impartiality and independence of the judiciary. 

Another Committee Expert said that there were credible allegations that authorities manipulated the criminal justice system to harass and impede the work of human rights defenders and political opponents, using unfounded criminal accusations based on fabricated evidence.  Prosecution was often based on ambiguous crimes such as "contempt of authority"; arrests were made without warrants; persons were detained in incommunicado detention for periods of up to 90 days; interrogations were conducted without the presence of legal representation; and there was lack of access to an independent medical examination.  Defence counsels were not allowed to review files or meet with their clients except for a few brief minutes before hearings began, and without due privacy.  In some cases, trials were held behind closed doors in police detention centres, rather than in courts of law, and extended beyond deadlines for processing.  This seriously affected the image of the independence of the judiciary and the Public Prosecutor's Office.

One Committee Expert expressed concern about the situation of children and adolescents who participated in protests, many of whom were reportedly subjected to sexual and gender-based violence, internally displaced, murdered or recruited to participate in a gang rehabilitation programme run by the National Police.

The Expert also expressed concern about arbitrary arrests of 2018 protest participants, as well as reports of a new wave of arbitrary arrests in the run-up to the November 2021 elections.  Was there a system for registering detainees? 

A Committee Expert expressed concern about the excessive use of pretrial detention, and asked about measures taken to ensure that convicted prisoners were held separately from persons in pretrial detention, and that adults were held separately from minors.

Another Committee Expert expressed concern that, under State legislation, authorisations were required to hold public gatherings, and demonstrations held by groups not participating in elections were prohibited.  This was in violation of the Covenant and the Committee’s general comment 37.

Arbitrary restrictions on the freedom of expression of journalists, media workers and human rights defenders reportedly took place between April 2018 and August 2019.  In one particularly concerning case, the owner and director of a television news station were charged with hate speech and terrorism and detained from December 2018 to June 2019.  Had these two persons been convicted?  Many journalists had been threatened and censored, leading around 140 to live in exile.  This year alone, the Government had shut down 23 radio and communication stations and three media outlets.  Criminal proceedings regarding the murder of a journalist in 2018 had been closed under the Amnesty Law.

The Special Law on Cybercrimes, approved by the National Assembly of Nicaragua in 2020, could be used to control social networks and digital media.  How did this law protect the secrecy of communications?  The Government had reportedly used social networks to discredit opponents, and carried out cyberattacks against them.  What was the extent of the Government’s disinformation and smear campaigns?

By 2022, the State reportedly had cancelled the licences of at least 1,812 civil society organizations.  Were legal safeguards provided for these organizations? 

One Committee Expert said that there were allegations of lack of transparency in the public information available on the use of the State budget.  There were also reports of frequent nepotism, corruption and other economic crimes.  The Corruption Perceptions Index had placed Nicaragua 164th out of 180 countries.

What measures were taken to investigate fraudulent practices reported in past elections?  Law 1070 had annulled political competition for the 2021 general elections, allowing people related to the Government to access positions of power permanently.  The State had not conformed to demands from the international community for electoral reform prior to the 2021 election.  Between 2018 and 2021, the political candidacies of 11 women and 39 men were cancelled and three political parties were disqualified.  There were 2,031 reports of anomalies and political violence in the 2021 general elections.  The Expert repeated the Human Rights Council’s call for the Government to approve electoral and institutional reforms with the aim of guaranteeing free and fair elections.

Closing Remarks

PHOTINI PAZARTZIS, Committee Chairperson, thanked colleagues for expressing their concerns in relation to Nicaragua.  She expressed regret that the State party had not sent a delegation to participate in the dialogue.  It seemed that the situation of human rights in Nicaragua had seriously deteriorated.  There was a clamp down on journalists and protestors, prolonged arrests of political opponents, a lack of independence of the judiciary, and a lack of cooperation with international institutions.  The Amnesty Law, which granted State agents immunity concerning their actions in response to protests in 2018 and 2019, was particularly concerning, including regarding the issue of retroactivity.  In closing, Ms. Pazartzis repeated her call on the State party to cooperate with the Committee, the treaty body system and all international institutions, with a view to improving the human rights situation of the citizens of Nicaragua.

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