The United States has imposed sanctions on Nicaragua’s attorney general, Wendy Carolina Morales Urbina, for her role in the government’s persecution of political prisoners and civil society. Morales Urbina has been accused of exploiting her office to suppress dissent by seizing property from government political opponents without legal basis. She played a key role in taking property from 222 political prisoners who were sent to the US and stripped of their Nicaraguan nationality in 2023. The US is blocking any property or interests Morales Urbina holds in the country and banning US transactions with her. This action is part of ongoing efforts to combat anti-democratic actors and human rights abusers.
The US government has condemned President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, for their ruthless oppression of peaceful opposition members in Nicaragua. Morales Urbina supported these policies by enabling the designation of Nicaraguan opposition members as terrorists and blocking their financial resources with an anti-terrorism law. Ortega, a former Marxist rebel, has faced opposition from the US since leading a revolution that toppled a US-backed government over four decades ago. Increasing human rights violations by his government have further strained relations between Nicaragua and the West. The State Department had previously placed Morales Urbina on a corruption blacklist, preventing her from entering the US.
Last year, Ortega’s government stripped 300 people of their citizenship for alleged terrorism, including the 222 political prisoners who were sent to the US after negotiations but were unable to return and were exiled after a law was passed stripping them of their Nicaraguan nationality. Ortega has faced heavy sanctions from the US, as have many other officials and judges in Nicaragua. When Ortega returned to office in 2007, he gradually tightened his grip on state institutions, cracking down on dissidents, including members of the Catholic Church. In April 2018, over 300 people died when citizens protested against austerity measures and social security cuts, and the government responded with lethal force.
Amnesty International has criticized the Ortega government for consolidating power through the excessive use of force, unjust criminalization of activists and dissidents, attacks on civil society, and forced exile. The US continues to oppose Ortega’s government and take action against those involved in human rights abuses and anti-democratic actions. The sanctions on Morales Urbina are part of a broader effort to hold accountable those responsible for the persecution of political prisoners and civil society in Nicaragua. By targeting key officials like Morales Urbina, the US aims to pressure the Nicaraguan government to respect human rights and democratic principles. Ortega and his government’s actions have drawn international condemnation, further isolating Nicaragua from the West.
