NICARAGUA: ARBITRARY DETENTION OF INDIGENOUS OPPOSITION LEADER NANCY ELIZABETH HENRÍQUEZ JAMES

The International League Against Arbitrary Detention (ILAAD) urges the Government of Nicaragua to take all the necessary actions to implement the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Opinion No. 70/2024 concerning Nancy Elizabeth Henríquez James, asking the Government of Nicaragua to immediately release her, and to accord her an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations in accordance with international law.

Read the full WGAD Opinion concerning Nancy Elizabeth Henríquez James (Nicaragua): Opinion No. 70/2024.

ARREST OF INDIGENOUS NICARAGUAN LEADER

Nancy Elizabeth Henríquez James is an Indigenous Nicaraguan leader and President of Yapti Tasba Masraka Nanih Aslatakanka (Children of Mother Earth United) (YATAMA), an Indigenous organization based on the Atlantic coast. She also served as a deputy for the North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. Her arrest took place amid a broader campaign of persecution against political opponents and human rights defenders in Nicaragua.

On 1 October 2023, Ms. Henríquez James was arrested in Managua after being lured under false pretences by National Police officers, only two days after another YATAMA deputy was detained. Around the same time, the authorities shut down two YATAMA-run community radio stations and revoked the party’s legal status, accusing it of “treason.” After her arrest, Ms. Henríquez James was held incommunicado for two weeks before her relatives were informed of her whereabouts. She was transferred to La Esperanza women’s prison during those two weeks, where she was placed in isolation.

In a secret trial held without proper legal representation, she was sentenced to eight years in prison on charges of “spreading false information” and “undermining national integrity.” She remained in custody in solitary confinement.

The Government failed to respond to the Working Group’s request for clarification.

DETAINED WITHOUT LEGAL BASIS AND HELD INCOMMUNICADO

Following her arrest, Ms. Henríquez James was detained without an arrest warrant, not informed of the reasons for her arrest, and transferred in a private vehicle to an undisclosed location. For nearly two months, no formal charges were filed, even exceeding the 90-day maximum detention period permitted under domestic law. Her incommunicado detention, combined with the absence of judicial control, placed her outside the protection of the law and deprived her of fundamental legal safeguards. The Working Group concluded that the authorities’ failure to present a legal basis or judicial order rendered her detention unlawful under international law amounted to a violation of articles 3 and 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 9 (1) and (2) of the Covenant.

Moreover, the source submitted that Ms. Henríquez James was held incommunicado for two weeks. Afterwards, she was allowed short visits, which were suspended without justification on 13 December 2023 until 25 April 2024. The Working Group, therefore, found that her incommunicado detention placed her outside the protection of the law and prevented her from being promptly presented before a judge, in violation of articles 6, 8, 10 and 11 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 9 (3) of the Covenant.

Noting all the above, the Working Group concluded that Ms. Henríquez James’s detention was arbitrary within the meaning of category I.

DETAINED FOR EXERCISING HER RIGHTS TO EXPRESSION AND POLITICAL PARTICIPATION

According to the source, Ms. Henríquez James was targeted because of her political activity and expression. As an Indigenous leader and opposition deputy, she publicly denounced human rights violations and defended the rights of Indigenous and Afro-descendant communities. The closure of YATAMA’s media outlets and the cancellation of its legal status demonstrated a clear attempt to silence political dissent and marginalize Indigenous political participation. She was later convicted to 8 years’ imprisonment in the context of political repression of the opponents of the ruling party, preventing her from participating in public life. The Working Group found that her arrest and detention were to be the result of her peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, opinion, peaceful assembly, association, and political participation, in breach of Articles 19, 20, and 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Articles 19, 21, 22, and 25 of the Covenant.

The Working Group concluded that  Ms. Henríquez James’s detention was arbitrary within the meaning of Category II.

SECRET TRIAL AND DENIAL OF A FAIR HEARING

The source stated that Ms. Henríquez James was denied legal counsel, and when it eventually proved possible to hire a lawyer for her, he took himself off the case after the authorities threatened to strike him off if he pursued it. Thus, the Working Group found a violation of article 10 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 14 (1) and (3) (b) and (d) of the Covenant due to the denial of her right to effective legal counsel.

Furthermore, the source pointed out that no public hearings were held, and the authorities failed to disclose any evidence or charges. Senior officials publicly referred to opposition members as “criminals” and “terrorists,” undermining the presumption of innocence. Such remarks, unchallenged by the Government, undermined the presumption of innocence guaranteed under article 11(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 14(2) of the Covenant, and demonstrated undue political interference in the judiciary.

The Working Group also expressed concern about Ms. Henríquez James’s health and detention conditions. At 61 years old and suffering from several ailments, she was reportedly denied medical care, held in deplorable conditions, subjected to incommunicado detention, and prohibited from speaking in her Indigenous language, Miskito.

Therefore, considering all the above, the Working Group found that the violation of the right to a fair trial and due process of Ms. Henríquez James had been of such gravity as to render her deprivation of liberty arbitrary under category III.

TARGETED FOR HER INDIGENOUS IDENTITY AND POLITICAL OPINIONS

The source affirmed that since 2018, Nicaragua has pursued a systematic campaign of persecution and criminalization of political opponents, human rights defenders, and Indigenous leaders. Ms. Henríquez James was targeted not only for her political activity but also for her Indigenous identity as a member of the Miskito community. The Working Group therefore concluded that her detention was discriminatory on political and ethnic grounds, as her arrest, isolation, and mistreatment formed part of a pattern of discriminatory practices aimed at suppressing Indigenous political participation, in violation of articles 2 and 7 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 2 (1) and 26 of the Covenant.

Hence, the Working Group found Ms. Henríquez James’s deprivation of liberty to be arbitrary under category V.

CONCLUSIONS OF THE UN WORKING GROUP AGAINST ARBITRARY DETENTION

In light of the foregoing, the UN Working Group Against Arbitrary Detention considered that the detention of Nancy Elizabeth Henríquez James was arbitrary and fell under categories I, II, III, and V, because the deprivation of liberty of Ms. Henríquez James was in contravention of articles 2, 7, 9–11, 19–21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Articles 2, 9, 10, 14, 19, 21, 22, 25, and 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The Working Group recommended that the Government of Nicaragua take the steps necessary to remedy the situation of Ms. Henríquez James without delay and bring it into conformity with the relevant international norms. The Working Group considered that, taking into account all circumstances of the case, the appropriate remedy would be to release her immediately and accord her an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law.

The Working Group urged the Government to conduct a thorough and independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the arbitrary deprivation of liberty of Ms. Henríquez James and to take appropriate measures against those responsible for the violation of her rights.