According to Catholic Church sources in Nicaragua, the nationwide police have banned celebrating spiritual processions throughout Lent and Holy Week within the streets.
The resolution got here after President and Supreme Police Chief Daniel Ortega labeled members of the Catholic Church, together with monks, bishops, cardinals, and Pope Francis, as a “mafia.”
The bishop of the diocese of Leon and Chinandega, Socrates Rene Sandigo, stated that the police solely allowed the Stations of the Cross to happen inside or within the courtyard of church buildings however not within the streets.
Ortega accused the Catholic Church of being undemocratic by not permitting Catholics to decide on their leaders by direct vote and committing monetary crimes.
The auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Managua, Silvio Báez, was exiled to the US and declared a “fugitive from justice,” calling Ortega an “atheist, corrupt and criminal” after he attacked the church.
Pope Francis has expressed concern over the political scenario in Nicaragua and known as on leaders to sincerely search peace within the nation.
Recently, a bishop crucial of the federal government, Rolando Álvarez, was sentenced to 26 years and 4 months in jail for crimes of “treason.”