Nicaragua accused by UN experts of a mass purge of lawyers and weakening judicial independence

A United Nations panel of human‑rights experts reported that around 2,000 Nicaraguan lawyers were removed from the official registry in a matter of days without prior notice or any hearing. The experts said the government is systematically depriving lawyers of their licences, describing the action as a “silent purge.”

The removal follows a series of changes since October 2023, when the National Police assumed control of the Supreme Court, dozens of magistrates and over a thousand court staff were dismissed, and constitutional reforms in 2025 re‑defined the judiciary as an organ coordinated by the Presidency. International organisations warned that these moves erode institutional checks and balances, limiting citizens’ ability to obtain independent legal protection. Human‑rights defender Vilma Núñez emphasized that “the protection of rights requires institutions capable of applying them independently.”

The UN panel urged that the mass exclusion of lawyers undermines access to legal defence and threatens the rule of law in Nicaragua.