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President Daniel Ortega and his wife and Vice-President Rosario Murillo had 39 opposition politicians arrested before the election
Photo: Oswaldo Rivas / Reuters
After his controversial re-election, the US imposed an entry ban on the president and his ministers.
Ortega's wife Rosario Murillo, the vice president of the Central American country, is also affected by the entry ban, as the White House announced on Tuesday.
"The suppressive and abusive actions of the Ortega government and its supporters are forcing the US to act," said US President Joe Biden.
"The undemocratic, authoritarian actions of the Ortega government have crippled the electoral process and robbed the citizens of Nicaragua of the right to choose their leaders in free and fair elections."
"Neither free nor fair"
The long-time head of state Ortega was clearly confirmed in office in the controversial election on November 7th.
The re-election of the president, who ruled in an authoritarian manner together with his wife, was considered certain.
The 76-year-old had 39 opposition politicians arrested in the months leading up to the election, including seven possible candidates for the presidency.
The election was sharply criticized internationally. On election day, Biden spoke of a "sham election" that was "neither free nor fair." On Tuesday, the US President denounced in his sharply worded statement an "undermining" of the democratic institutions in Nicaragua. He condemned the arrests of "peaceful protesters, civil society leaders, private sector leaders, student leaders, political leaders, journalists and presidential candidates, among others."
The EU foreign affairs representative Josep Borrell recently called Ortega a dictator and the election a “fake”, which only serves to keep Ortega in power.
Both the European Union and the USA have recently tightened their sanctions against Nicaragua's leadership.
This in turn accuses the "imperial powers" of supporting terrorists and putschists in Nicaragua.
Ortega was already in power after the revolution against dictator Anastasio Somoza from 1979 until he was voted out of office in 1990.
In 2006 he was re-elected head of state of the Central American country.
In 2014, his ruling party, the FSLN, implemented a constitutional reform that abolished the presidential term of office.
Ortega is reportedly seriously ill.
His wife Murillo, who has been Vice President since 2017, is said to have a lot of influence.
From April 2018 mass demonstrations in Nicaragua with more than 300 dead and hundreds of arrests took place.
The protests were initially directed against social reform, later the demonstrators also called for an end to repression, freedom of the press and new elections.
muk / AFP / dpa