Dec 10

Dec 10 'We’re Going to Kill You': Nicaragua's Brutal Crackdown on Press Freedom

Journalists have been beaten, arrested, and robbed in the wake of the civil revolt that paralyzed the country earlier in the year

Riot police patrol the streets during a protest against Daniel Ortega in September. [Photo: Oswaldo Rivas / Reuters] — Riot police patrol the streets during a protest against Daniel Ortega in September. *[Photo: Oswaldo Rivas / Reuters]*

Nicaraguan TV journalist Miguel Mora was driving home from work when he was pulled over by armed police.

“They ordered me take off my glasses and put a hood over my head,” says Mora, who directs the 100% Noticias news channel. “Then they took me by the neck and forced me into a pickup, where an officer told me: ‘You’re responsible for the death of police. If you keep fucking around, we’re going to kill you and your whole family.’”

It was the sixth time Mora had been detained by police in the space of a week. He also faces criminal charges of “inciting hate,” while drones have filmed his house and armed men on motorbikes track his movements.

Such intimidation is part of an escalating assault on press freedoms in Nicaragua, unleashed in the wake of the civil revolt that paralyzed the country earlier in the year.

Dec 10 'We’re Going to Kill You': Nicaragua's Brutal Crackdown on Press Freedom

Journalists have been beaten, arrested, and robbed in the wake of the civil revolt that paralyzed the country earlier in the year

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Based in Las Cruces, New Mexico, Damien Willis is a newspaper reporter and communications professional. He generally writes about the ways we pass our time in the 21st century.