Salazar and Castro Honor Bishop Rolando Álvarez for Bravery Against Catholic Persecution in Nicaragua

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Reps. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) and Joaquín Castro (D-TX) hosted the International Republican Institute to award the Bishop of Matagalpa, Monsignor Rolando Álvarez, with the 2024 Freedom Award for his contributions to the fight for religious liberty in Nicaragua.
Since 2018, the dictators Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo have launched an unprecedented assault against the Catholic Church in Nicaragua. Bishop Álvarez was expelled and permanently banned from Nicaragua for fulfilling his duty as a steward to the 75% of Nicaraguans who are Catholics. The United States and Catholics everywhere stand with Bishop Álvarez and those who suffer under Ortega’s oppression.
“The Catholic Church in Nicaragua is the one institution that the satanic regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo truly fears,” said Rep. Salazar. “Brave Catholic leaders like Bishop Álvarez are doing the Lord’s work in tending to his flock. He is not only deserving of the 2024 Freedom Award, but of the Nobel Peace Prize, too!”
“Nicaragua’s descent into authoritarianism over the last six years is a tragic reminder of the very human consequences of the democratic backsliding that we have seen across the Western Hemisphere,” said Rep. Castro. “Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo have launched a shocking campaign of persecution against anyone in Nicaragua who dares to think or act independently of the regime, including leaders within the Catholic Church and other religious communities. I commend Bishop Álvarez and his colleagues for the courage they have shown. While I am relieved that many have found safety in exile, they should be able to practice their religion in their home country freely. I thank the International Republican Institute for honoring Bishop Álvarez and look forward to our continued work to restore democracy and freedom in Nicaragua.”
In February 2023, the Ortega-Murillo regime deported and revoked the citizenship of 222 political prisoners to the United States. Bishop Álvarez was expelled soon after on January 14, 2024 with 18 other religious officials. He now lives in the Vatican in Rome, and is ill due to the torture he suffered while in prison in Nicaragua starting on August 19, 2022.
Monsignor Álvarez was jailed by the Ortega regime in August 2022 for false crimes of “undermining national integrity” and “propagation of false news through information and communication technologies to the detriment of the State and Nicaraguan society.” He has since become a symbol of Catholic resistance to Ortega's tyranny.
BACKGROUND:
Last year, the Catholic Church published a report on the state of religious freedom in the world through their organization, Aid to the Church in Need. The report shows that among the socialist tyrants of Latin America, the Ortega regime stands out in its willingness to persecute their countrymen who profess the Christian faith.
Currently, Nicaragua is included in the State Department’s Countries of Particular Concern. This list includes countries guilty of severe violations of religious freedom under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1990. Though guilty of the same crimes, the Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional (FSLN) or Sandinistas are not included in the list of Entities of Particular Concern, a similar list designed to identify organizations that suppress religious freedom. Salazar has called for the Sandinistas to be included in this list.
Salazar continues to be a champion of the Nicaraguan people in Congress, most recently introducing the Restoring Sovereignty and Human Rights in Nicaragua Act (HR 6954) with Human Rights Subcommittee Chairman Chris Smith (R-NJ).
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