Diaz-Balart, Gimenez, Salazar Tackle Nicaragua in Letter

Florida Republicans have joined forces to ask the U.S. Office of International Religious Freedom to intervene in Nicaragua. Florida Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R), Mario Diaz-Balart (R), and Carlos Gimenez (R) have joined forces to issue a letter to the Office . In the letter, Reps. Diaz-Balart, Gimenez, and Salazar share their “concern over the alarming repression of religious freedom by the Daniel Ortega regime in Nicaragua.

All three lawmakers have been vocal critics of communist regimes across the country, and in their letter to Ambassador Rashad Hussain, the U.S. Ambassador at Large to the Office for International Religious Freedom, they further express that the Ortega regime is using oppressive measures against the religious community in Nicaragua.

“We write to express profound concerns regarding the alarming escalation of suppression of religious freedom in Nicaragua and to request information on what the Office of International Religious Freedom is doing to counter religious persecution in Nicaragua.”

The lawmakers point out incidents involving religious organizations and authorities in Nicaragua, which include “the expulsion of the Apostolic Nuncio in March, the outlawing of the Missionaries of Charity in July” among others.

“Religious organizations, such as the Catholic Church, had been one of the last places where Nicaraguans could practice their faith and enjoy a small measure of religious expression,” the lawmakers continue.

Instead, “the authoritarian Ortega dictatorship has revealed that it will not tolerate even this most fundamental right, and will continue to suppress religious belief and practice for the Nicaraguan people.”

In a press release from Salazar, the GOP member’s office further chides Nicaragua, arguing that the Ortega regime “has unleashed fierce persecution against dissident voices in the country.”

A copy of the letter penned by the House members can be read here.