Detained Nicaraguan Catholic bishop and critic of Ortega will face trial

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MANAGUA, Jan 10 (Reuters) – A prominent Nicaraguan Catholic bishop who has strongly criticized authoritarian President Daniel Ortega will face trial while under house arrest, a judge said on Tuesday in the country’s latest crackdown on dissent .

Police arrested Bishop Rolando Alvarez in August, capturing him after he barricaded himself on church property for several weeks with other priests who are now behind bars in the notorious Chipote prison.

The judge did not say when the trial would begin.

Alvarez, bishop of the diocese of Matagalpa, is accused of undermining national integrity and spreading false news.

“The judicial authority examined the precautionary measures (against Alvarez) and chose to maintain the house arrest, authorized the presentation of evidence against him and sent the case to court”, announced the Nicaraguan justice in a statement.

Human rights organizations accuse Ortega’s government of persecuting the Catholic Church. Another prominent cleric, Bishop Silvio Baez, is in exile in the United States along with a number of other priests who have fled.

The government did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding Alvarez’s case.

More than a dozen priests have been arrested by police responding to Ortega. The president has accused Catholic leaders of trying to overthrow him in a “coup” following anti-Ortega street protests that began in 2018.

More than 360 people have died during the unrest, according to tallies by rights groups, while religious leaders have at times sought to mediate the conflict in the Central American country.

But as tensions escalated, Ortega officials expelled Catholic nuns and missionaries and shut down more than a dozen Catholic radio and television stations.

Reporting by Ismael Lopez; Written by Kylie Madry; Editing by David Alire Garcia and Josie Kao

Our standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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