Nicaragua Vows No Return to 'Barbarism' of 2018 Unrest

Nicaragua’s authorities pledged that there would be no return to the ‘horror’ and ‘barbarism’ that the country experienced during the wave of right-wing violence that the country faced in 2018. The comments were made during a ceremony on Monday commemorating the 40th anniversary of the post-revolution National Police. 

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Police Commissioner Francisco Díaz Madriz said at the ceremony held in Managua’s Revolution square, “We continue to protect the life, integrity and security of people...the right of our people to work and live in peace and we will not allow the horror and barbarism that our people lived last year in the attempt of the failed coup.”

A total of 22 police officers were killed by right-wing activists when protests against the Sandinista government began a year ago, in what the government and its supporters have described as a "soft coup." 

Among other actions, the protesters attacked leftist media outlets, such as the prominent Radio YA whose offices were burned down by the opposition. They also erected blockades around cities which, alongside newly imposed U.S. sanctions, have sought to damage the country’s economy. 

Despite the conflict, the government has reiterated its support for negotiations as a peaceful solution to the country’s issues.

The ceremony was also attended by President Daniel Ortega and Vicepresident Rosario Murillo from the ruling Sandinista National Liberation Front.

Murillo echoed the commissioner's comments saying, “what happened last year will never be repeated, we have learned and we have learned it well, but there are pretensions that are still delusional, and illusory, that wish to return to the past. That's impossible! Here nobody wants conflict.”

Meanwhile, Ortega celebrated the achievements of the police saying, “You have managed to defend our national sovereignty, to fight against crime, to fight against delinquency”. Figures show that Nicaragua has the lowest rate of crime in Central America.