MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the situation in Nicaragua
8.12.2021 - (2021/3000(RSP))
pursuant to Rule 132(2) of the Rules of Procedure
Manu Pineda
on behalf of The Left Group
B9‑0582/2021
European Parliament resolution on the situation in Nicaragua
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the Constitution of the Republic of Nicaragua,
– having regard to the UN Charter and, in particular, to Chapter 1, Article 1(2) thereof, which states that its purpose is to ‘develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples’,
– having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948,
– having regard to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961,
– having regard to the annual report of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on the situation in Nicaragua,
– having regard to Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Article 1 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, both of which state that ‘all peoples have the right of self-determination’ and that ‘by virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development’,
– having regard to the Agreement establishing an Association between the European Union and its Member States, on the one hand, and Central America on the other[1], signed on 29 June 2012, which has political dialogue as one of its three main pillars,
– having regard to Rule 132(2) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas, in line with its own laws and constitutional procedures, Nicaragua held general elections on 7 November 2021, which included presidential elections, elections to the National Assembly and elections to the Central American Parliament;
B. whereas six candidates stood in the presidential election; whereas, according to Nicaragua’s Supreme Electoral Council, Daniel Ortega received the most votes with 75.9 % of the votes cast, and therefore won the election; whereas Walter Espinoza received 14.2 % of the votes, Guillermo Osorno 3.3 %, Marcelo Montiel 3.2 %, Gerson Gutiérrez 1.8 % and Mauricio Orué 1.7 %; whereas the turnout in the presidential election was 65.3 %;
C. whereas seven parties and coalitions participated in the elections to the National Assembly, all of which won seats; whereas the Sandinista National Liberation Front won a total of 75 seats, the Constitutionalist Liberal Party won 9, the Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance won 2, the Independent Liberal Party won 1, the Alliance for the Republic won 1, the Nicaraguan Party of the Christian Path won 1, and YATAMA won 1;
D. whereas Cristiana Chamorro, who had announced that she would be running for President in the election, has been under house arrest since 2 June 2021 after being accused of laundering money during her time as Director of the Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation;
E. whereas Arturo Cruz was arrested on 5 June 2021; whereas the leader of the opposition group Blue and White National Unity, Félix Maradiaga, was arrested on 8 June 2021; whereas Juan Sebastián Chamorro was also arrested on 8 June 2021; whereas they had all announced their intention to run for President in the next general election; whereas they were arrested on the grounds of Law 1055/2020 which bans any actions against the independence, sovereignty and self-determination of Nicaragua; whereas the leader and other members of Unamos were also arrested; whereas their custody barred most of them from registering as candidates in the elections; whereas the court still has to pronounce judgment;
F. whereas the Sandinista National Liberation Front won 15 of Nicaragua’s seats in the Central American Parliament, the Constitutionalist Liberal Party won 2, the Independent Liberal Party won 1, the Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance won 1, and the Alliance for the Republic won 1;
G. whereas Nicaragua introduced an electoral reform in May 2021; whereas this reform introduces, inter alia, measures to ensure the participation of women as candidates, the availability of all information and documentation related to the election process in indigenous languages, the introduction of polling stations in remote areas and the regulation of the presence of party representatives at polling stations; whereas a new Supreme Electoral Council was voted in by the Nicaraguan National Assembly in May 2021; whereas it includes representatives nominated by all parties represented in Parliament, has a majority of women among its members and includes representatives from Afro-descendant and indigenous communities;
H. whereas the EU, in a statement by the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (VP/HR), did not recognise the elections as legitimate; whereas several countries and multilateral forums have adopted different positions concerning the electoral process; whereas the Organization of American States adopted a resolution stating that the Nicaraguan elections lacked democratic legitimacy; whereas this triggered Nicaragua’s decision to withdraw from the OAS, stating that this is only the latest example of the organisation becoming an interventionist instrument;
I. whereas both the EU and the US have imposed unilateral coercive measures such as sanctions on Nicaragua; whereas the EU prolonged its sanctions for another year on 11 October, ahead of the general elections; whereas the US administration increased its sanctions after the elections on 15 November; whereas UN human rights experts have called for the lifting of the sanctions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, as they have hindered the access of the countries they are imposed on to the international market in medicines and other vital supplies;
J. whereas the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights reported 117 cases of harassment, intimidation and threats against political activists and members of different social organisations since 1 August 2019;
K. whereas the interoceanic location of Nicaragua puts the country in a strategic position in Central America; whereas the construction of a canal between the Pacific and the Atlantic oceans was announced in December 2014 in collaboration with the Chinese company HKND Group; whereas the project was cancelled in 2018;
L. whereas USAID’s Responsive Assistance in Nicaragua Programme has been running since 2018 and states among its goals the promotion of a market economy for the country and the protection of private property, as well as support for opposition organisations and leaders; whereas USAID funded the Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation with over USD 7 million between 2014 and 2021; whereas this Foundation funds several privately owned media outlets controlled by the Chamorro family, as well as other organisations close to certain opposition groups; whereas other opposition and opposition-linked organisations were funded with over USD 3 million during the same period; whereas the Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation stopped its activities in February 2021 after Nicaragua passed a law which required it to declare its foreign funding;
M. whereas the US National Endowment for Democracy provided opposition groups with over USD 4.4 million between 2016 and 2019;
N. whereas the media outlets funded by USAID include the television channel 100% Noticias, directed by Miguel Mora who has repeatedly called for a US military intervention in Nicaragua to overthrow the government; whereas this has been echoed by other foreign-funded media outlets;
O. whereas hurricanes Eta and Iota hit Nicaragua in November 2020 with devastating consequences for the population; whereas key infrastructures such as water supplies were destroyed and are now being reconstructed; whereas there have been lasting consequences for the population of the Caribbean coast of the country, the hardest-hit region, which is still in need of assistance; whereas the EU increased its funding to the Central American region by EUR 5 million in order to deal with the consequences of hurricanes Eta and Iota in Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador;
P. whereas despite its small contribution to climate change, Nicaragua could be one of the hardest-hit countries given its geographical position and characteristics; whereas Nicaragua has already invested highly in adaptation and in mitigating its carbon impact, including through increased use of renewable energies over the last decade, which now account for 76 % of the country’s energy consumption;
Q. whereas the triumph of the Sandinista Revolution led to the granting of free healthcare to all Nicaraguans; whereas since the Sandinista National Liberation Front assumed government for the second time in 2007, Nicaragua has created a network of public hospitals which are accessible to the entire population, resulting in a 58 % decrease in child mortality; whereas since 2007, education has been made free and accessible to all Nicaraguans; whereas during this period, poverty has dropped from affecting 48 % of Nicaraguans to 29 %, and extreme poverty has been reduced from 20 % to 6 %;
1. Takes note of the result of the general elections held on 7 November;
2. Recalls that the people of Nicaragua have the right to deal with their own affairs without foreign interference and in line with international law;
3. Expects the Nicaraguan judicial system to promptly judge Cristiana Chamorro, Arturo Cruz, Félix Maradiaga and Juan Sebastián Chamorro in line with Nicaraguan laws and international standards;
4. Notes with concern the statement of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on the deterioration of the human rights situation and its possible impact on the exercise of the Nicaraguan people’s political rights; expresses concern regarding the ongoing situation in Nicaragua, urges all actors involved to refrain from the use of violence and calls for a policy of dialogue between different social and political actors to resolve it; calls on the relevant authorities to hold those responsible to account and to abide by national and international law;
5. Calls for the sanctions against Nicaragua to be lifted in line with UN recommendations; stresses that the policy of sanctions against Nicaragua is an infringement of the rights of all Nicaraguan people, including their right to health, and has contributed to further polarising and inflaming the country’s political situation; condemns the decision of the US administration to increase its coercive measures;
6. Calls on the VP/HR and the Member States to engage in constructive dialogue with the Nicaraguan Government and base bilateral relations on international law and human rights; highlights that mutually beneficial relations between the EU and Nicaragua can have a positive impact on many aspects, including the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals;
7. Expresses concern about the particularly dramatic consequences climate change is having in Nicaragua given its geographical characteristics, including through the increase in extreme meteorological phenomena as was seen during hurricanes Eta and Iota; recalls that the richest and most developed countries have contributed the most to the current climate emergency and therefore have a responsibility towards countries such as Nicaragua that are suffering its most severe consequences; calls for the EU and its Member States to adopt a climate justice approach when developing policies in the relevant areas and to take actions in the relevant forums such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change;
8. Calls on the Nicaraguan Government to decriminalise abortion and ensure the sexual and reproductive rights of all its population;
9. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, and the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the parliaments and governments of the Member States, the Government of Nicaragua, the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly, and Latin American regional bodies, including the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States.
- [1] OJ L 346, 15.12.2012, p. 3.