Journalist Detained After Criticizing Rising Prices in Nicaragua

Nicaraguan journalist Elsbeth D’Anda was detained by the National Police after he publicly criticized the high cost of living in Nicaragua on a television program. His arbitrary detention was denounced by several organizations, including The People’s Defense Attorneys, Nicaragua Press Freedom Alerts, the OAS Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

“On October 27, 2024, Elsbeth D’Anda, director of the TV program “La Cobertura,” which is broadcast on Channel 23, was detained,” stated Attorney Jose Antonio Lopez in a video posted on his Facebook account.

The attorney explained that the journalist had addressed the high cost of basic food items on the television program, in addition to the general high cost of living and the rise in prices in anticipation of workers’ upcoming Christmas bonuses. These critiques, “apparently disturbed the Nicaraguan government, who then ordered the journalist’s arrest.”

Lopez affirmed that the presenter was detained in the afternoon of October 27, 2024, by 20 police agents who arrived at his home on five different patrol vehicles.

He was overpowered, handcuffed, and put in a private car to be taken to the infamous El Chipote jail complex. The officers  also took all of his electronic devices and equipment, the lawyer indicated.

Organizations demand the release of the detained journalist

The organization Alertas Libertad de Prensa Nicaragua [“Nicaraguan Press Freedom Alerts”] also denounced the journalist’s detention and demanded he be freed.

“We add our voices to the denunciation of the Abogados Defensores del Pueblo, demanding the immediate liberation of journalist Elsbeth D’Anda, director of the program La Cobertura on Channel 23,” advocated this organization, which gives follow-up to such cases.

Alertas Libertad de Prensa Nicaragua clarified that the case of this detained journalist has no relation to “crimes of drugs or arms possession, but came as the result of the program’s social contents, which are of great relevance to the Nicaraguan population.”

“We demand that the Nicaraguan government cease its aggression and attacks against critical journalists; that they free journalist D’Anda and provide information on the whereabouts of missing journalist Fabiola Tercero,” the organization declared.

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Neither the Nicaraguan government nor the National Police have offered any explanation of the denounced detention. They generally issue no pronouncements in such cases.

Other organizations also demand D’Anda’s freedom

The Special Rapporteur for Press Freedom expressed “concern” regarding reports of the journalist’s detention. “The denunciations indicate that his detention was in retaliation for his work as a journalist,” their spokesperson stated. They urged the Nicaraguan authorities to “release information about his whereabouts,” and called on the international community to continue demanding “guarantees for journalists.”

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) also demanded that: “the Nicaraguan government immediately release Elsbeth D’Anda, Channel 23 journalist detained on October 27, after reporting on the increase in the price of basic foods.”

“It’s unacceptable to imprison journalists just for doing their job. Silencing the messenger will not silence the message,” added the independent organization, dedicated to the defense and promotion of press freedom.

Nearly 300 journalists fled or banished

In early November, the Inter-American Press Association (IAPA) and eight other organizations asked the UN Human Rights Council to guarantee “protection and respect for freedom of expression and press freedom” in Nicaragua.

As of September 2024, the Foundation for Freedom of Expression and Democracy (FLED) counted at least 278 Nicaraguan journalists who had either fled into exile or been banished from the country.

The Association of Journalists and Independent Communicators of Nicaragua (PCIN), yet another exiled organization, has denounced “new and crueler patterns” of aggression by the Sandinista government against Nicaraguan journalists.

Between 2018 and 2023, at least 54 media outlets have been closed, among them five that were raided and had their properties confiscated, including the newspaper La Prensa, Confidencial, 100 % Noticias and Trinchera de la Noticia, according to that NGO.

This article was published in Spanish in Confidencial and translated by Havana Times. To get the most relevant news from our English coverage delivered straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Dispatch.