Americas diplomats back joint call for Nicaragua to restore civil liberties

The Organization of American States on Friday approved a resolution that calls on Nicaraguan authorities to free political prisoners and restore civil

liberties, carving a path for potential coordinated action.



The Washington-based organization will create a task force to engage with Nicaraguan authorities and exiles to communicate its demands, including establishing conditions for fair elections, freeing political prisoners and disclosing the whereabouts of people who have been forcibly disappeared. It

will then come back with recommendations for concrete actions.



The government of Nicaraguan co-Presidents Daniel Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo, has heavily restricted civil liberties since a wave of protests in 2018. Last month, it banned the opposition from participating in future elections.



OAS Secretary-General Albert Ramdin told Reuters he hoped the meeting would ultimately lead to more than verbal condemnation over human rights abuses.