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Tyranny Without Masks in Nicaragua

By openly decreeing that there will be no more elections in his country, Ortega marks a point of no return of unprecedented gravity.

Editorial by El País of Spain (Confidencial)

HAVANA TIMES – Daniel Ortega has decided to remove the last mask he had left. During Sunday’s ceremony commemorating the 47th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution—a historic milestone that allowed Nicaragua to rid itself of the Somoza dynasty, which had subjected the country to its rule for more than 40 years—the former guerrilla leader uttered a phrase that cements his authoritarianism: “There will be no more elections here.” The declaration marks a point of no return of unprecedented gravity in the Americas.

Until now, the regime headed by Ortega together with his wife and co-president, Rosario Murillo, had resorted to a charade. It used elections as a cosmetic adornment to keep up appearances before the international community, while corrupting the process: rigging elections, imprisoning opponents—as occurred flagrantly in the 2021 presidential election—and stripping hundreds of dissidents of their political rights. The president........

© Havana Times