In the wake of last Sunday’s fraudulent re-election, Nicaraguan protesters in the European Parliament on Thursday demanded that the EU propose a ‘road map’ to isolate the regime of Daniel Ortega for a long time.
“Despite the illegality, the dictatorship is not in a state of eruption, but we are in a moment of prolongation of power. This pushes the international community to a long-term plan a year or two ago,” said disgruntled journalist Carlos Fernando Zamoro.
In his view, the European camp should work to put pressure on the Ordega regime, which has said it can oppose the new European sanctions but cannot suspend the police state that supports it. Therefore, he said, the regime should be isolated politically and economically, and that the International People’s Front should exert maximum pressure to release political prisoners.
In the same vein, opposition leader Alexa Zamora called for the establishment of a “diplomatic and economic” blockade in Managua, which would reduce the country’s funding from institutions such as the Central American Bank.
For his part, Jonathan Hotwell, a spokesman for the Foreign Action Service, acknowledged that the EU was considering accepting additional sanctions against Nicaragua and that it was “impossible” to open the Ortega dialogue without harming the people.
“It is important for the EU to uphold its demands for the release of prisoners and for real political dialogue in the country,” Hotwell said.
In the wake of the MEPs, ‘popular’ Gabriel Mato has called for further sanctions against Managua and, in particular, the suspension of trade deals. Meanwhile, Javier Nart, a member of the Liberal group, backed a medieval European strategy for Nicaragua, insisting that the Central American country had changed from a “Somoza” dictatorship to an “Ortega”. “They are two sides of the same coin,” he replied.
