No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeArchiveGovt-Press Relations Take a Big Nosedive

Govt-Press Relations Take a Big Nosedive

MANAGUA – A year of souring relations between the government of President Daniel Ortega and the independent media escalated to outright aggression in late December, following a series of events that included a physical attack against a reporter for the opposition daily La Prensa.

On Dec. 19, journalist Jorge Loáisiga, who was covering an event with Ortega and U.S. Ambassador Paul Trivelli in a Managua neighborhood, was assaulted by members of a newly formed irregular presidential security force known as the “blue shirts.”

Loáisiga claims he was trying to approach Ambassador Trivelli, who was giving statements nearby to other reporters, when he was grabbed by the blue shirts and restrained, while several other journalists tried to come to his defense.

Loáisiga was then temporarily handcuffed by police, who later defended their actions by claiming that the journalist had suspiciously entered a restricted “security zone” and that they didn’t realize at the time that he was a reporter.

The incident sparked outrage by La Prensa and other independent media, who compared Ortega’s blue shirts to the former Nazi brownshirts and blackshirts of former Italian leader Benito Mussolini.

The press and several opposition political leaders also argued that the blue shirts were an example of the dangers of Ortega’s controversial Councils of Citizen Power

(CPCs), Sandinista party groups that being created across the country.

That accusation prompted several local CPC leaders to accuse La Prensa of defamation, which in turn led to La Prensa filing a complaint with the Inter-American Press Association about the worsening condition here.While religious leaders of the evangelic church have come out in defense of freedom of expression, the situation has continued to deteriorate.

On Dec. 27, Ortega gave a speech saying that he “was sure” that the opposition media wanted to see the death of his wife, Rosario Murillo, the architect of the government’s restrictive new press policies that are based on disseminating information only to official media, controlled by Ortega and Murillo’s children.

That allegation prompted the independent media to accuse the president of being “paranoid” and “schizophrenic.”

La Prensa, on Dec. 31, named the “independent media” as Nicaragua’s “Person of the Year in 2007.”

 

Trending Now

Climate Change in Costa Rica Devastates Coffee Farms in Los Santos

In Costa Rica’s Los Santos region, famous for producing nearly half the country’s coffee, farmers are reeling from heavy losses driven by wild weather....

Why Costa Rica Feels Like a Safe Haven for This Longtime Expat

If someone asked me to sum up why I live in Costa Rica in 5 words or less, my answer could well be: “It...

Costa Rica’s Rare Birds at Risk as Human Activity Threatens Extinction

Costa Rica’s bare-necked umbrellabird, a striking black bird with a red throat pouch and crest, is in trouble. A new study in Nature Ecology...

Costa Rica Pushes USA to the Brink but Falls in Penalty Heartbreak

If you just caught the end of the USA vs. Costa Rica Gold Cup quarterfinal, you probably feel like you need another cup of...

Costa Rica’s Top Court Bans President Chaves from 2026 Election Campaign

Costa Rica’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal on Thursday barred President Rodrigo Chaves from participating in the 2026 election campaign, ruling that he "illegitimately used" his...

Life After MS-13 in El Salvador as Residents Seek a Fragile Peace

Esperanza Martinez lost three relatives who were murdered and saw numerous bodies left in the streets of her neighborhood, a former stronghold of the...
Avatar
spot_img
Costa Rica Tours
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica