Managua 'Diablitos Negros' dance in tribute to Santo Domingo

Hundreds of Catholic devotees marched through Managua in a ten‑hour procession honoring Santo Domingo de Guzmán, one of Nicaragua’s most popular popular‑faith celebrations. Participants covered their bodies with black engine‑oil or red paint and dressed as “diablitos” – devil‑like figures symbolising the surrender of evil to the saint – while dancing to a marching band.

Among them was 52‑year‑old Juan Ramón Porta, who promised to dance as a diablito after surviving a childhood traffic accident that left him with a metal plate in his body. He said the promise was kept after he recovered, thanking the saint for the miracle. Others, such as Roberto Guardián and Andrew Padilla, also carried replicas of the saint and recounted personal vows fulfilled through the saint’s intercession.