Nicaragua Tells Guatemala to Respect Its Right to Define Electoral Policies

Nicaragua's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a strong rebuke to Guatemala after the latter expressed rejection of President Daniel Ortega's remarks about potentially suppressing elections and ending democratic alternation in the Central American nation.

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From before Esquipulas, through Esquipulas, and until today, the message is the same: Respect for the rights of others is peace.

In an official note, Nicaragua's Foreign Ministry invoked the historic 1987 Esquipulas Accords, which fostered peace in Central America. The ministry stated, "Before Esquipulas, through Esquipulas, and until today, the message is the same: Respect for the rights of others is peace." Nicaragua recalled the calls from Central American leaders during difficult times, who promoted the "right to live peacefully, securely, working to prosper."

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Here (in Nicaragua) there will never again be elections so that they (the opposition) can try to trap the government, trap power through them.

Ortega, who has been in power since 2007, stated at a rally commemorating the 47th anniversary of the Sandinista revolution that elections would not be held again in Nicaragua to prevent the opposition from seizing power. Guatemala's Ministry of Foreign Affairs countered that Ortega's assertion constitutes a "grave violation of the principles and purposes enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Inter-American Democratic Charter, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as well as the principles of democracy and universal suffrage."

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That assertion constitutes a grave violation of the principles and purposes enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Inter-American Democratic Charter, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as well as the principles of democracy and universal suffrage.

Guatemala's criticism aligns with that of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, and countries including the United States, the Dominican Republic, Panama, and Costa Rica. Nicaragua's National Assembly president, Gustavo Porras, attempted to clarify Ortega's statement, suggesting the president meant elections would not be held "in the hands of the imperialists to try to overwhelm and impose the power of the imperialists over the people." Ortega's government has faced accusations of electoral fraud and political persecution for years.

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they are not going to have elections again in Nicaragua in the hands of the imperialists to try to overwhelm and impose the power of the imperialists over the people.