OAS sets up negotiating group to challenge Nicaragua democracy crisis

Foreign ministers from across the Americas have agreed to set up a new negotiating group to pressure Nicaragua into restoring civil liberties and holding free elections, warning that President Daniel Ortega's grip on power is threatening regional security.

Meeting in Washington for their first emergency consultation in seven years, representatives from the 32 active member states of the Organization of American States (OAS) approved a consensus resolution on Friday expressing deep concern over the "continuous dismantling of representative democracy" in the Central American nation.

The newly formed group has been given 60 days to seek a "rapid and direct dialogue" with Nicaraguan authorities and report its findings.

"The most important thing is to seek dialogue with those in power, to honour the spirit of cooperation in this region," said OAS Secretary General Albert Ramdin.

A regional standoff

Nicaragua, which is governed by the former Sandinista guerrilla Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, formally left the OAS in November 2023. Earlier this year, Ortega announced that Nicaragua would stop holding elections altogether, and in September, the country’s parliament passed electoral reforms that shut out the political opposition.

Despite Managua’s departure from the regional bloc, the OAS resolution reminded the government that it remains bound by its international human rights commitments. The final text noted that denouncing the OAS charter "does not exempt the State from its international obligations in terms of human rights."

Beyond calling for elections, the resolution demands that Nicaragua release its political prisoners and reveal the whereabouts of victims of forced disappearances.

Diplomatic ties fray further

As the meeting got underway, US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau revealed that Managua had just blocked the appointment of Natasha Franceschi, the newly nominated US ambassador to the country.

"Murillo and Ortega have constantly closed the door to productive dialogue," Landau said. "Just yesterday, they rejected our highly qualified ambassador, which demonstrates their lack of diplomacy."

In response to the growing crisis, Dominican Republic Foreign Minister Víctor Bisonó announced that his country would immediately withdraw its embassy from Nicaragua "while the conditions we have denounced persist."

Disagreements over foreign influence

The resolution was passed after intense negotiations behind closed doors, exposing divisions within the bloc over how to handle the security implications of Nicaragua's alliances.

Washington had pushed for a strong statement warning against the presence of Russian and Chinese military and technological influence in Central America. The final compromise text expressed concern over "the risk of foreign interference in Nicaragua in security, technology supply, and information exchange."

However, some South American nations resisted casting the political crisis as an external security threat. Brazil and Uruguay entered formal reservations into the footnotes of the declaration.

Benoni Belli, the Brazilian ambassador to the OAS, questioned the US-led security focus. He warned that "peace through force" is a slogan that risks alienating national sovereignty.

But human rights advocates at the meeting argued the crisis has already spilled over Nicaragua's borders. Rosa María Payá, a special rapporteur for the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, told the assembly that Nicaraguans are living under a dictatorship, adding: "The situation in Nicaragua is a threat to regional security and not just an internal problem."