Nicaragua: UN Expert Group Qualifies the Detention of 4 Mayangna Indigenous Defenders as Arbitrary and Calls for Their Release

The Working Group joins calls for their immediate release, alongside the Inter-American Commission and Court on Human Rights, that issued precautionary and interim measures in favor of the four defenders last year.

Mr. Ignacio Celso Lino, Mr. Argüello Celso Lino, Mr. Donald Andrés Bruno Arcángel, and Mr. Dionisio Robins Zacarías are defenders of the Mayangna Sauni As territory and have protected their ancestral land against attacks, threats, invasions, and evictions from criminal gangs interested in the Kiwakumbaih mine located in that territory.

The detentions of the four defenders were carried out without a judicial order at the time of their arrest; the detainees were not informed of the reason for their detention nor were they explained their right to seek a lawyer or an interpreter, as their native language is not Spanish. On the contrary, the detentions occurred with force while the detainees were at home, and one was at his children's school.

The four defenders disappeared and were also unreachable through communication channels for several months. In addition, they were denied the access to trusted lawyers. Not knowing where or under what conditions they were held, the families of the victims filed habeas corpus petitions, which were denied.

The Working Group confirmed that the Lino brothers have been deprived of their liberty as a consequence of exercising their fundamental rights and freedoms in their roles as community leaders and local judges, defending the collective rights to land and indigenous territories titled by the State in favor of their communities. Mr. Robins Zacarías has been deprived of his liberty due to his long career as a volunteer forest ranger and as a member of the Constitutional Liberal Party, opposing the Sandinista National Liberation Front. In other words, the four human rights defenders were detained for exercising their rights enshrined in the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, for promoting democratic participation and fighting against attacks on the environmental rights of their community.

In its opinion No. 30/2024, the Working Group further states that the lack of an impartial, professional, and independent judicial system in Nicaragua has violated the due process and fundamental guarantees of the four indigenous individuals, and their imprisonment has been accompanied by isolation, torture – including sexual torture – and mistreatment.

The Working Group is convinced that Indigenous Peoples defending their territory in Nicaragua are being persecuted and intimidated, and in particular, the situation of Mr. Celso Lino, Mr. Bruno Arcángel and Mr. Robins Zacarías is currently very concerning.

The families of the defenders have limited financial resources, and it is very costly to visit the detainees, who are approximately 500 km away from their territory, as well as to bring them food and medicines. On several occasions, when family members manage to visit the defenders, they have been denied visits or the delivery of food and medicines.

Since 2022, family members have only been allowed to speak with them for five to ten minutes through a glass window, using mobile phones provided by prison guards, without being allowed to hug or touch them.

The defenders face intimidation from guards daily, punishments in isolation cells, and are in a critical health situation.

Family members have reported these abuses to the lawyers handling their cases, seeking intervention before the judge and visits to the penitentiary system. However, the lawyers have expressed fear of retaliation if they complain to the authorities, which has prevented them from visiting the defenders in prison.

Given the serious situation facing the defenders of the Mayangna Sauni As territory, we demand that the State of Nicaragua:

1. Release the four defenders in accordance with the recent opinion No. 30/2024 of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions, as well as the provisional measures ordered by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights on June 27, 2023.
2. We call on the international community and human rights organizations in the region to:
3. Actively and closely monitor the situation faced by the four defenders in prison, to protect their life, personal integrity, and health.
4. Continue demanding the release of the four defenders, who are currently at high risk of further torture while incarcerated.