United Nations human rights experts say Nicaragua’s co-presidents have established a dictatorship and find reasonable grounds to believe crimes against humanity have been committed. The group says it has documented detentions, disappearances, political persecution and citizenship removals, while Nicaragua’s government denies the allegations and rejects the Human Rights Council. At least 452 people considered political opponents have been stripped of citizenship since February 2023, and experts also describe surveillance targeting Nicaraguans abroad. They urge countries to bring a case against Nicaragua at the International Court of Justice over the convention on statelessness. No country, filing deadline or court timetable is identified, and Nicaragua is not a party to the International Criminal Court.
TLDR: UN experts report evidence of political repression and say there are reasonable grounds to believe crimes against humanity have been committed in Nicaragua. They urge countries to seek an International Court of Justice case over statelessness, though no filing schedule or country is identified.
United Nations human rights experts say Nicaragua’s co-presidents have established a dictatorship and that there are “reasonable grounds to believe that crimes against humanity have been committed.” Their findings concern allegations the Nicaraguan government denies. The expert group has investigated human rights violations and abuses in the country since April 2018.
The group’s stated rationale is to examine documented abuses and the removal of protections for people regarded as opponents. Its members say that evidence points to a systematic effort to eliminate opposition and secure permanent dynastic rule. On that basis, they urge countries to bring a case against Nicaragua at the International Court of Justice over the convention on statelessness. The recommendation is a proposed legal response to the experts’ findings, not a decision already made by a court.
The experts describe actions by co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo that include arbitrary detentions, forced disappearances, political persecution and stripping opponents of citizenship. Jan-Michael Simon, chair of the expert group appointed by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council, called the system a “full dictatorship” with the goal of permanent dynastic rule. He also said Ortega had declared that Nicaragua would never hold elections again.
The account describes a long-running concentration of power. After mass protests in 2018, a government crackdown killed hundreds, and Ortega and Murillo remained in power. Ortega declared himself the winner of the 2021 election after jailing all the candidates who could possibly have beaten him. The international community widely viewed that vote as illegitimate, and the United States does not recognize Ortega’s presidency.
The government has imprisoned or exiled adversaries, religious leaders, journalists and others, while stripping hundreds of citizenship, homes and possessions. Since 2018, it has shut more than 5,000 organizations, largely religious groups, and forced thousands to leave the country. Officials often accuse critics and targeted organizations of working for the United States and its enemies to undermine the government’s power. The scale of closures and departures described by the experts suggests that the effects reach beyond people directly detained or deprived of citizenship.
Nicaragua has rejected the Human Rights Council’s authority, calling it “manipulated, obsolete and interfering.” The government, which has withdrawn from the council, has also accused “neo-colonialist powers” of using human rights as political aggression. These denials and objections are part of the record, but they do not change what the experts say they have documented. The two accounts differ sharply: the experts describe a pattern of abuses, while the government rejects the body examining them and disputes its legitimacy.
Reed Brody, a member of the expert group, said the ruling Sandinista Party has “total control” over police, courts and prisons. Under a constitution adopted last year, he said, the legislature and judiciary are no longer independent and are controlled by the co-presidents. Brody described a country with no opposition parties, independent press or critical nongovernmental organizations, saying there is no space left for disagreement.
The findings also reach beyond Nicaragua’s borders. Brody said a transnational surveillance network monitors, intimidates and attacks hundreds of thousands of Nicaraguans living abroad. That allegation places surveillance alongside detention, exile and citizenship removal as a means of pressure on people considered opponents. The account does not detail how the network operates or identify specific tools used to monitor people, so the reported reach is clearer than the methods described.
Since February 2023, at least 452 people considered political opponents have been declared “traitors” and stripped of citizenship, Brody said, leaving them stateless. They include former Sandinista leaders, a former vice president and all presidential candidates from 2021. The loss of citizenship is a direct and serious consequence for those named. The account does not provide application forms, fees or an individual appeal process for those affected.
The practical next step proposed by the experts is for countries to bring a case against Nicaragua to the International Court of Justice, the United Nations’ highest tribunal, alleging violation of the convention on statelessness. No filing deadline, named country, court timetable or compliance procedure is specified in the account. The experts’ recommendation is not itself a court ruling, and Nicaragua is not a party to the International Criminal Court. The practical effects described in the findings are already substantial: people have lost citizenship, homes and possessions, while organizations have closed and thousands have left. The account gives no costs, paperwork requirements or enforcement schedule for a possible court case.
The expert group has spent years investigating allegations that Nicaragua’s government denies. Its findings now set out the basis for possible international legal action, while the proposed case and any timeline remain part of the plan rather than completed steps. Countries would need to decide whether to act, and any case would proceed through the International Court of Justice. Those decisions and legal steps remain unresolved.
Lisa Grant serves as a Staff Writer for Just Right News, where she spearheads the publication’s coverage of Technology, Data Capitalism, and Surveillance. With a focus on the encroaching influence of Big Tech on the American way of life, Grant brings a critical, liberty-minded perspective to the most complex digital issues of the modern era. Her reporting is defined by a deep-seated skepticism of centralized power and a commitment to protecting the privacy and autonomy of the individual against the rising tide of what she calls the “Algorithmic State.”
Grant’s unique insight into the tech industry is rooted in her upbringing in Palo Alto, California. Growing up in the epicenter of Silicon Valley, she witnessed firsthand the transformation of the technology sector from a hub of scrappy, freedom-loving innovators into a landscape dominated by monolithic corporations. This proximity to the birth of the digital revolution provided her with an insider’s understanding of the culture and motivations driving the industry. For Grant, the shift toward data capitalism—where personal information is harvested as a primary commodity—is not just a market evolution, but a fundamental challenge to traditional American values of property rights and personal privacy. She saw the “garage startup” ethos replaced by a culture of data-mining and social engineering, a transition that informs her vigilant reporting today.
Now based in Seattle, Washington, Grant operates from another of the nation’s primary technological frontiers. Her location in the Pacific Northwest allows her to observe the real-world consequences of the tech industry’s expansion, from the implementation of invasive surveillance technologies in urban centers to the growing partnership between corporate entities and municipal governance. By reporting from the ground in Seattle, she bridges the gap between the abstract world of coding and the tangible impact it has on citizens’ daily lives, often highlighting how local policies serve as a testing ground for broader national surveillance initiatives.
At the heart of her work for Just Right News is her acclaimed feature series, “The Algorithmic State.” Through this series, Grant explores the ways in which automated systems and artificial intelligence are increasingly used to bypass traditional legislative processes and social norms. She argues that the reliance on opaque algorithms to manage society threatens to erode the transparency and accountability essential to a free republic. Her work meticulously documents how data-driven governance can lead to a “soft” surveillance state that penalizes traditional viewpoints and rewards digital conformity.
Grant’s reporting is a vital resource for readers who are wary of the “nanny state” and the unchecked power of digital gatekeepers. She views the defense of the digital frontier as the next great battle for constitutional conservatives. By exposing the mechanisms of data capitalism and the quiet expansion of surveillance networks, she empowers her audience to reclaim their digital sovereignty. In an era where information is often weaponized by those in power, Lisa Grant remains a steadfast advocate for the truth, ensuring that the principles of liberty and individual agency are not lost in the transition to an increasingly digital world.