Nicaragua advances Caribbean development amid crackdown on exiled journalists

The Nicaraguan government highlighted progress on the Caribbean south coast, citing new roads, electricity, water, hospitals, schools and housing projects that integrate intercultural bilingual education and the concept of “Buen Vivir.” Delegates emphasized that recognizing the region’s ethnic and linguistic diversity has become a constitutional principle, stating, “La diversidad de la Costa Caribe no es un obstáculo para el desarrollo, sino una de las mayores riquezas de Nicaragua.”

At the same time, international observers reported a systematic repression of Nicaraguan journalists living in exile, particularly in Costa Rica. The Foundation for Freedom of Expression and Democracy documented threats, surveillance, deportations and intimidation of journalists and their families, describing the pattern as “transnational repression.” The Ortega regime has also seized properties, vehicles, bank accounts and media facilities belonging to opposition figures, transferring many assets to state institutions such as the Instituto Nicaragüense de Seguridad Social and the Ministry of Health.