Persecution of Catholics in Nicaragua worsens, activists say. Here is a timeline:

MIAMI – The persecution of Roman Catholics in Nicaragua under the administration of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, includes the detentions of two bishops, 15 priests, and two seminarians, according to activists who are tracking the cases.

Bishop Silvio José Báez, the auxiliary bishop of Managua, has been living in exile since 2019 in the United States, and he has appealed to Catholics worldwide to pray for the “oppressed” and “persecuted” under “Ortega’s Sandinista dictatorship.”

Monsignor Waldemar Stanislaw Sommertag, who worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See in Nicaragua, was also forced to leave in 2022.

In December, the National Endowment for Democracy awarded Báez the Democracy Service Medal to recognize his “unique dedication to freedom.” The Dalai Lama is among the notable past recipients.

Here is a recent timeline of the detentions:

Dec. 31, 2023: Rev. Gustavo Sandino Ochoa, of the Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Santa María, in the Diocese of Jinotega.

Dec. 24, 2023: Rev. Jader Guido

Dec. 22, 2023: Monsignor Óscar Escoto

Dec. 20, 2023: Bishop Isidoro del Carmen Mora, of the Diocese of Siuna on Dec. 20

Aug. 19, 2022: Bishop of Matagalpa Rolando Álvarez detained and later sentenced to more than 26 years in prison for treason.

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