Congressional reps: Dictator Ortega "abuses, beats and imprisons" opponents to later exile them to the U.S.

Congressional representatives from South Florida spoke out this Thursday on the banishment of 222 political prisoners by the Daniel Ortega's regime, who were sent to the U.S. after being declared "traitors to the homeland" and "disqualified from exercising public functions on behalf of of the State of Nicaragua, and their citizen rights being perpetually suspended.”

After the release of the Nicaraguan political prisoners, Republican Rep. María Elvira Salazar said on Twitter  that "as president of the Subcommittee of the Americas I will not rest until I see Nicaragua free."

The dictator Ortega released 222 political prisoners, among them the presidential candidates. They're on their way to DC.

I celebrate that 222 families will not suffer anymore and I remind the satrap that as president of the Subcommittee of the Americas I will not rest until I see Nicaragua free. 🇳🇮

— María Elvira Salazar 🇺🇸 (@MaElviraSalazar) February 9, 2023

Fellow Republican Rep. Carlos A. Giménez denounced on Twitter that the Ortega regime "runs over, beats and imprisons" political opponents to later banish them to the United States.

"We demand the freedom of all political prisoners in Nicaragua and the end of the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo!" Giménez concluded.

🚨El régimen de Daniel Ortega te atropella, golpea, encarcela y luego te destierra a los Estados Unidos.

¡Exigimos la libertad de todos los presos políticos en #Nicaragua y el fin de la dictadura de Daniel Ortega y Rosario Murillo! #SOSNicaragua 🇳🇮https://t.co/wmN8GUxiYZ

— Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (@RepCarlos) February 9, 2023

Other reactions

U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the release was "a constructive step" on the path "to address human rights abuses in Nicaragua."

"We will continue to support better conditions for the Nicaraguan people," he assured.

We welcome the 222 Nicaraguan political prisoners released by the Government of Nicaragua today. We will continue to support improved conditions for the Nicaraguan people.

— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) February 9, 2023

The Race and Equality Institute, a non-governmental organization based in Washington, D.C., said via Twitter that it celebrates "with emotion and hope" the release of the 222 political prisoners in Nicaragua, recalling that "there are still 23 people deprived of freedom for political reasons" in that country.

The former ambassador of Argentina to the OAS, Paula María Bertol, also indicated that "this is proof that these people were unjustly imprisoned violating their human rights and I hope they can return home with their families soon."

The Costa Rican Foreign Ministry also indicated that they are following recent events "very closely" regarding "the release of a significant number of these political prisoners from prison is received with caution, but also with hope of an improvement in the political panorama in that brother country”.

Meanwhile, the director for the Americas of Human Right Watch, Tamara Taraciuk, explained that the way in which the 222 political prisoners were released shows how Nicaraguan justice is handled at the whim of Ortega.

"For a democratic transition to exist, it is essential to continue monitoring the restrictions on civic space and the abuses in Nicaragua," she added.

The way in which they were released is one more example of the arbitrariness of justice, handled at the whim of Ortega.

For there to be a democratic transition, it is essential to continue monitoring the restrictions on civic space and the abuses in Nicaragua.

— Tamara Taraciuk (@TamaraTaraciuk) February 9, 2023

This Thursday, the Nicaraguan regime "unilaterally" released 222 political prisoners with the help of the United States.

"We order the immediate and effective deportation of 222 people," says a statement read by the president of Chamber One of the Managua Court of Appeals, magistrate Octavio Rothschuh Andino.

According to the text, the released prisoners had been “sentenced for committing acts that undermine the independence, sovereignty, and self-determination of the people; for inciting violence, terrorism and economic destabilization”.

The American airline Omni Air International, in charge of the flight, indicated on its website that it departed this Thursday at 6:30 a.m. from Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, towards the Washington-Dulles International Airport.