Nicaragua orders arrest of prominent writer Sergio Ramirez
Al Jazeera
President Daniel Ortega has been accused of cracking down on critics, political opponents ahead of November elections.
Nicaraguan prosecutors have ordered the arrest of an award-winning novelist who served as vice president under President Daniel Ortega, making him the latest perceived opponent of the left-wing government to be charged amid an ongoing crackdown as elections near. Sergio Ramirez, who in 2017 won the Premio Cervantes, the most prestigious literary award in the Spanish-speaking world, is accused of “incitement of hate” and “conspiracy” – charges that have been used several times in the arrests of political opponents and candidates set to run against Ortega in November’s election. Seventy-eight-year-old Ramirez had been an official in the Sandinista government that came to power in 1979 and was vice president under Ortega during his first term from 1985 to 1990.More Related News