United Nations human rights experts say there are reasonable grounds to believe crimes against humanity have been committed in Nicaragua, while the government denies abuses and rejects the council’s role. Their account describes detentions, forced disappearances, political persecution and citizenship removals targeting opponents. The group reports that at least 452 people have been stripped of citizenship since February 2023 and urges countries to bring a case before the International Court of Justice over statelessness. The allegations have not been adjudicated, and Nicaragua is not a party to the International Criminal Court. The next step depends on whether countries pursue the proposed court case; the excerpt specifies no deadline, filing costs or enforcement timetable.
TLDR: UN experts cite alleged abuses and mass citizenship removals as grounds for concern about Nicaragua’s leadership. They urge countries to consider an International Court of Justice case, but no court finding has been made and no deadline or filing timetable is provided.
United Nations human rights experts say there are “reasonable grounds to believe that crimes against humanity have been committed” in Nicaragua. Their findings concern co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo and a government campaign the experts say has targeted political opposition. The statement is an expert group’s assessment, not an adjudicated finding by a court. Nicaragua’s government denies human rights violations and has rejected the Human Rights Council’s authority.
The experts’ stated rationale is that documented abuses show an effort to eliminate opposition and maintain permanent dynastic rule. The group has investigated allegations in Nicaragua since April 2018. Its members describe arbitrary detentions, forced disappearances, political persecution and the removal of citizenship from opponents as parts of that campaign. The experts say these actions should be understood together, rather than as separate incidents.
Jan-Michael Simon, chair of the group appointed by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council, called Nicaragua a “full dictatorship” with the goal of “permanent dynastic rule.” Simon also cited Ortega’s statement four months earlier that Nicaragua would never hold elections again. Those remarks, alongside the experts’ account of state actions, inform the group’s conclusion. They do not amount to a criminal conviction.
The experts’ account traces the country’s current political situation to mass protests in 2018 and a government crackdown that killed hundreds. Ortega and Murillo have remained in power since then. Ortega declared himself the winner of the 2021 election after jailing all candidates who could have possibly beaten him, according to the account provided. The vote was widely viewed as illegitimate by the international community, and the United States does not recognize Ortega’s presidency.
The group says the alleged abuses reach beyond political candidates. Nicaragua’s government has imprisoned or exiled adversaries, religious leaders and journalists, while hundreds have lost citizenship, homes and possessions. Since 2018, the government has shuttered more than 5,000 organizations, largely religious, and forced thousands to flee the country. The government often accuses critics and targeted organizations of working for the United States and its enemies to undermine its power.
Reed Brody, a member of the expert group, said the ruling Sandinista Party has “total control” over the police, courts and prisons. He said a constitution adopted last year placed the legislature and judiciary under the control of the co-presidents rather than leaving them independent. Brody also described a country without opposition parties, an independent press or critical nongovernmental organizations. His account is that there is no remaining space for disagreement.
Citizenship removals are among the most concrete details cited by the experts. Since February 2023, at least 452 people considered political opponents have been declared “traitors” and stripped of citizenship, Brody said, leaving them stateless. The group includes former Sandinista leaders, a former vice president and all presidential candidates from 2021. Brody also said a transnational surveillance network monitors, intimidates and attacks hundreds of thousands of Nicaraguans living abroad.
The government disputes the international scrutiny. Nicaragua has withdrawn from the Human Rights Council and called it “manipulated, obsolete and interfering.” It has also accused “neo-colonialist powers” of weaponizing human rights for “political aggression.” Those objections are part of the record, but they do not resolve the experts’ allegations or establish whether a court would accept the evidence.
The practical next step urged by the experts is for countries to bring a case against Nicaragua before the International Court of Justice, the U.N.’s highest tribunal. They say such a case could address an alleged violation of the convention on statelessness. The report provides no filing deadline, fees, forms or enforcement timetable. That means the account does not set out what a country would need to spend, what paperwork it would need to file, or how long a case might take. Those details would depend on decisions and steps not described by the experts.
The experts’ proposal is not a case already underway. Countries would first have to decide whether to pursue it, and the report does not say that any country has filed. Nicaragua is not a party to the International Criminal Court, a separate limit on the accountability route described in the report. The proposed International Court of Justice case is presented as a way to address the statelessness convention, not as a completed prosecution of the leaders.
The assessment therefore sets out allegations and a possible legal path, not a final ruling. Any legal findings would depend on a process that has not been described as underway. The experts’ conclusions remain claims until tested through a competent legal process, while the government continues to reject the scrutiny and deny violations.
Sophie Carter serves as a Staff Writer for Just Right News, where she anchors the outlet’s critical coverage of Elections, Influence, and Democracy Infrastructure. In an era where the mechanics of voting and the flow of political capital are under constant scrutiny, Sophie provides a steady, principled voice dedicated to the preservation of American institutional integrity and the rule of law.
Raised in Charlotte, North Carolina, Sophie’s perspective was forged in a community that balances rapid modern growth with a deep respect for tradition and civic duty. Growing up in the Queen City, she witnessed firsthand how a robust local culture depends on the trust between the citizen and the state. This upbringing instilled in her a foundational belief that the right to vote is a sacred trust—one that must be protected from both administrative overreach and the encroaching influence of special interest groups. Her reporting reflects these North Carolina roots, emphasizing the importance of community-led governance and the preservation of the individual’s voice in the face of nationalized political movements.
Now based in Atlanta, Georgia, Sophie operates from the heart of one of the nation’s most pivotal and contested political landscapes. Her location allows her to report from the front lines of the debate over election security, legislative reform, and the modernization of voting systems. For Sophie, the “infrastructure” of democracy is not merely a matter of machines and ballots; it is the collection of laws, people, and transparent processes required to maintain public confidence. Her work often highlights the necessity of clear, enforceable standards that ensure every legal vote is counted fairly and that the machinery of our republic remains accountable to the taxpayers who fund it.
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