INTERVENTION OF NICARAGUA
AT THE PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE OAS
ON MAY 21, 2019
Brothers Sisters Members of the Organization of American States.
Mr. President of the Permanent Council.
Mr. Secretary General,
Mr. Deputy Secretary General.
The Delegation of the Government of Reconciliation and National Unity of the Republic of Nicaragua takes note of the interventions of the Friendly Countries that have shared concerns about the situation in Nicaragua during this session.
We reiterate the unwavering commitment of our Government to continue advancing and making all the necessary efforts to strengthen Security, Peace, Coexistence, Harmony and the Right to Work of all Nicaraguan families, as well as the responsible fulfillment of the agreements, arrived at through consensus, at the Negotiation Table.
We regret the events of last May 16 at the National Penitentiary System, where inmate Eddy Montes Preslin died as a result of a riot, as they tried to snatch the regulation weapon from a Penitentiary Officer, resulting in physical harm and injuries to 21 Penitentiary Officials.
Given these facts, a Technical Team of Police Investigators and Forensic Experts were dispatched at 6:20 p.m. of the very same day, to the penitentiary, where investigations are still ongoing.
From February 21st to the date, the Negotiation Table for National Understanding and Peace, convened by the Government of the Republic of Nicaragua, has celebrated 43 work sessions, always counting on the participation of the Apostolic Nuncio Waldemar Sommertag, Representative of His Holiness Pope Francis and Mr. Luis Ángel Rosadilla, Representative of the Secretary General of the OAS.
In the framework of these sessions we have made progress on the following:
1. Road Map for the Negotiations.
2. Agenda of the themes to be discussed at the Negotiation Table.
3. Agreement to Strengthen Citizen Rights and Guarantees, agreed and signed by the parties and by the Witnesses, Companions and International Guarantors.
4. Agreement for the facilitation of the process of releasing persons detained, in relation to the events that have occurred since April 18, 2018, with the support of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). This Process will conclude on June 18.
Following the agreements, the GRUN in the framework of the Constitution and the Laws, released 236 people, another 100 yesterday, May 20, for a total of 336 people released. Another 132 are still pending for release, which will be completed on June 18, at the latest, all of this according to the figures reconciled by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
On that date, June 18, 2019, all will be released.
5. The Delegation of the Government of Reconciliation and National Unity presented on April 10, before the Negotiation Table a proposal for an Agreement on the Return of Nicaraguans from abroad, who left the country in the context of the violent events that occurred on April 18, 2018, a proposal that was not accepted by the other Delegation.
However, the Government of Nicaragua approved the Return Program on April 15, with the purpose of contributing to the reunification of the Nicaraguan families, the main protagonists of national development.
Regarding the Agenda item on the call for the International Community to suspend sanctions, the Delegation of the Government of Nicaragua presented at the Negotiation Table, since April 2nd, 2019, a proposal to advocate for the cooperation and support of the International Community in the implementation of said Agreement and for the suspension of sanctions that affect the Right to Human, Economic and Social Development of Nicaragua. This agenda item is still being discussed.
Regarding the agenda item referred to the Strengthening of Democracy and Implementation of Electoral Reforms for carrying out Electoral Processes, on March 26, 2019 the Government of Nicaragua requested that the Secretary General of the OAS resume the Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2017 and which was interrupted by the violence of the attempted coup of April of last year. It has since been reinitiated by the SG-OAS and the Government of Nicaragua.
The Government of Nicaragua continues to call for a stop to all violent provocations or violations of the Constitution and the Laws, respecting the will of the Nicaraguan people who want Peace, Security, Work, Stability and Reconciliation.
We regret the biased, one-sided and unproven information taken up by some Organizations, including those of this Organization, which do not contribute to understanding and strengthening of Peace and seek only to assist those sectors that promote and attempt to justify economic sanctions that prevent access to international financial resources, affecting the economic and social development of the Nicaraguan people.
Nicaragua will continue working on the restitution of the Social, Economic and Political Rights of all Nicaraguans, focused on the fight against poverty, which is being threatened by destabilizing political actions and external interventions, which seek to prevent Nicaragua's access to the necessary resources to continue on the path of Progress, Peace and Human Development.
The Delegation of the Government of Reconciliation and National Unity to the Organization of American States reiterates once again the unwavering commitment of the State and Government of Nicaragua to continue making its best efforts to achieve Understanding, Peace and Harmony among the Nicaraguan families and reiterates its willingness to continue in the implementation of the agreements and in the search for new consensus for the Common Good and for National Reconciliation.