Religious freedom violations increasing in Nicaragua

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) has issued a latest report warning of a deterioration of non secular freedom in Nicaragua.

The report has showed a major increase in alleged violations of non secular freedom, rising from 222 cases in 2024 to 309 cases last 12 months. The group said that many violations were probably going unreported as a consequence of a “climate of fear” created by the federal government.

Many religious leaders in Nicaragua are subject to “precautionary measures” that require them to report weekly to the police and to hunt permission to conduct various religious activities.

Some pastors have also been detained by police for significant periods of time. Furthermore, reports have suggested that the Nicaraguan government has banned international visitors from bringing Bibles into the country.

One pastor, Efrén Antonio Vílchez López, has been sentenced to 23 years in jail on what human rights groups say were “trumped up” charges. His real “crime” is believed to be criticism of the present Nicaraguan government.

According to Open Doors, Nicaragua is the thirty second worst persecutor of Christians on the planet, with the situation having deteriorated significantly since 2018 when there have been a series of anti-government protests.

Leader Anna Lee Stangl, Director of Advocacy and Americas Team at CSW, said, “For several years now CSW has documented a continued deterioration within the situation of freedom of faith or belief and other human rights in Nicaragua. 2025 was no different.

“While in some ways the regime has modified its strategies – releasing political prisoners into house arrest versus forcing them into exile, for instance – its primary goal stays the identical: to regulate, coopt or eliminate anyone it deems a threat to its authority and survival.

“The international community must do more to support and strengthen independent voices within the country, including those of non secular groups, and, in light of Nicaragua’s own unresponsiveness to international communications, it should consider holding other states that support the regime to account.”