Nicaraguans Honor Student Killed By Right-Wing Protesters

On Saturday April 20, Nicaraguans came together in the city of Leon to pay homage to Cristhian Emilio Cadena, a university student killed by U.S.-backed protesters one year ago.

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Right wing protesters from the U.S.-funded  Alianza Civica were vandalizing the student center at the National University (CUUN) in the city of Leon. Cadena was among the student activists defending the university when the protesters attacked. Sandinista newspaper ‘La Voz del Sandinismo’ argued that this was the reason Cadena passed away.

“These were the reasons that he became a target of the terrorists that filled the city with chaos, as part of the implementation of the most bloody and abominable actions in Nicaragua’s recent history. ... he was one of those that tried to defend the CUUN building, but was overwhelmed by the aggressors whose plan was to usurp political power in this country,” they said.

Cadena was an architecture student at CUUN and was a leader of the student association at the university. He was from the working class Sutiaba district in Leon. The local community paid their respects at CUUN near where his body was found.

He was the first victim of the violent right wing protests in the city.

Nicaraguans also marked one year since the beginning of the right-wing protests that began in opposition to a change to social security, but became a movement against the Sandinista government. U.S. journalist and author Max Blumenthal has described the action as a ‘soft coup.’ 

Among other actions, the protesters have attacked leftist media outlets, such as the prominent Radio YA whose offices were burned down by the opposition. They have also erected blockades around cities that have severely damaged the country’s economy. Despite the conflict, the government has reiterated their support for negotiations as a peaceful solution to the country’s issues.

Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega also spoke Saturday, in a seperate address to Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel, saying that Cuba “has been the inspiration, example of all our peoples.”