No Show by Government of Nicaragua

Empty chairs at April 7 IACHR hearings in D.C.

Last week, the Government of Nicaragua pulled a “no show” at public hearings before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and also at a working meeting with IACHR and ELAW partner Lottie Cunningham Wren.

Nations of the Americas regularly participate in proceedings of the IACHR, but when the subject of the hearing was human rights in Nicaragua, Nicaragua’s government chose not to participate.

“What will I tell my people?” says Lottie, who traveled from Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua, to Washington, D.C.  to testify on behalf of Misikito communities who are under siege in a violent land conflict with settlers.

“Our traditional leaders will see this as proof that the State is not interested in resolving the conflict,” says Lottie.

“We will continue with the international mechanism of human rights to make sure that the international community is informed about the continuing violation to our territory and natural resources.”

Lottie is a Miskito attorney and founder of CEJUDHCAN.  She is working with community members on Nicaragua’s North Atlantic Coast to end a conflict fueled by natural resource extraction and illegal sale of indigenous territory.

Ten community members have been murdered and dozens more have been attacked and kidnapped since June last year.

For more information, see:

El Estado de Nicaragua ausente ante crisis de derechos humanos en el pais

Miskito Communities Seek Justice

We will keep you posted on this volatile situation, as Lottie seeks justice for Nicaragua’s indigenous peoples.

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Bern Johnson
Executive Director