IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 981 

Condemning the violence, persecution, intimidation, and murders committed 

by the Government of Nicaragua against its citizens. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 3, 2018 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN (for herself, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. COOK, Mr. SIRES, Mr. 

CURBELO of Florida, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Miss GONZA ́LEZ-COLO ́N of 

Puerto Rico, Mr. DEUTCH, and Mrs. TORRES) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Condemning the violence, persecution, intimidation, and murders committed by the Government of Nicaragua against 

its citizens. 

Whereas Daniel Ortega has taken systematic steps to weaken 

democratic institutions in Nicaragua since 2006, including by violating the Nicaraguan Constitution through actions such as ignoring presidential term limits; 

Whereas Daniel Ortega selected his wife, Rosario Murillo, as 

his vice-presidential candidate in 2016; 

Whereas domestic and international observers have repeatedly 

documented and criticized irregularities in the 2011 and 

2016 presidential elections as well as the 2012 and 2017 

municipal elections in Nicaragua; 


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•HRES 981 IH 

Whereas, on April 18, 2018, students in Nicaragua began to 

protest the unilateral decision of the Government of Nicaragua to impose reforms on the Nicaraguan Social Security Institute; 

Whereas the protests were met with a violent and brutal response from the Nicaraguan National Police, subsequently resulting in a widespread call by the Nicaraguan 

people for freedom, democracy, electoral reforms, and respect for human rights; 

Whereas since April 18, 2018, the Nicaraguan government, 

the Nicaraguan National Police, or militias controlled by 

the Nicaraguan government have been responsible for escalating violence, committing murders, and many cases of 

torture and disappearances; 

Whereas to block the dissemination of reports of violence and 

repression committed against peaceful protesters, the 

Nicaraguan government shut down the signal of media 

stations throughout Nicaragua; 

Whereas according to press reports, the Nicaraguan government has denied basic medical care to and attempted to 

poison the food and water of those protesting oppression 

under the Ortega administration; 

Whereas, on the night of April 20, 2018, a pro-government 

mob set fire to the offices of independent radio station 

Radio Darı ́o in the city of Leo ́n; 

Whereas, on April 20, 2018, Ambassador Michael Kozak, the 

Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the Department of State, said, ‘‘Nicaragua is going in the 

wrong direction on many fronts and that is one of them, 

of media freedom. But also on all the basics, I mean, it’s 


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•HRES 981 IH 

a long litany of torture, extrajudicial killing, the elections 

were a sham . . . the Ortega government has basically 

shut down a lot of the opposition, a lot of the independent civil society organizations as well as the free 

media’’; 

Whereas, on April 21, 2018, Nicaraguan journalist A ́ngel 

Gahona was shot and killed by pro-government security 

forces while broadcasting live on Facebook; 

Whereas, on April 21, 2018, the Department of State issued 

a travel advisory for Nicaragua and since then has continued to advise travelers to reconsider travel to Nicaragua due to ongoing violence; 

Whereas, on April 22, 2018, the Department of State issued 

a statement that ‘‘we condemn the violence and the excessive force used by police and others against civilians 

who are exercising their constitutional right to freedom 

of expression and assembly’’; 

Whereas, on April 23, 2018, the Department of State ordered 

the departure of family members accompanying United 

States Government personnel in Nicaragua and also authorized the departure of such personnel; 

Whereas, on Mother’s Day in Nicaragua, May 31, 2018, 

press reports stated that peaceful marches to support the 

mothers of the victims of the earlier protests encountered 

violence from ‘‘the repressive police and shock forces’’, 

leaving 15 dead and nearly 200 injured in the cities of 

Managua, Estelı ́ and Masaya; 

Whereas, on May 31, 2018, the Department of State issued 

a statement saying that ‘‘those individuals responsible for 

human rights violations will be held accountable by the 


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•HRES 981 IH 

international community in international fora’’ in response to the violence during the Mother’s Day protests; 

Whereas, on June 4, 2018, Secretary Pompeo, participating 

in the Organization of American States General Assembly 

in the District of Columbia, stated, ‘‘In Nicaragua police 

and government-controlled armed groups have killed dozens, merely for peacefully protesting’’; 

Whereas, on June 7, 2018, the Department of State announced visa restrictions against individuals involved in 

human rights abuses or undermining democracy in Nicaragua; 

Whereas, on June 20, 2018, the Department of State announced, ‘‘The United States condemns the ongoing government-sponsored violence and intimidation campaign in 

Nicaragua, including the June 16 arson attack against 

the home and business of a family in Managua, killing 

six, and the further intimidation of the family during the 

wake’’; 

Whereas a report from the Asociacio ́n Nicaragu ̈ense Pro 

Derechos Humanos (Nicaraguan Association for Human 

Rights) states that as of June 25, 2018, at least 285 

people have been killed, over 1,500 people have been injured, and 156 people continue to be disappeared; 

Whereas the Catholic Church has played an important role 

serving as a mediator between protesters and the Government of Nicaragua, and Catholic bishops and priests have 

risked their lives trying to prevent more massacres; and 

Whereas the United States House of Representatives has 

sought to reestablish democracy and the rule of law in 

Nicaragua by passing H.R. 1918, the Nicaraguan InvestVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:47 Jul 03, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR981.IH HR981

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•HRES 981 IH 

ment Conditionality Act, on October 3, 2017, by unanimous consent: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) condemns the violence, persecution, intimi3 dation, and murders of peaceful protesters by the 

4 Government of Nicaragua; 

5 (2) supports the people of Nicaragua in their 

6 pursuit for democracy, including their call for free 

7 and fair elections overseen by credible domestic and 

8 international observers; 

9 (3) urges the international community to stand 

10 in solidarity with the people of Nicaragua; 

11 (4) calls on the United States to continue to 

12 condemn the atrocities in Nicaragua, demand the re13 lease of individuals wrongfully detained, and identify 

14 those individuals whose involvement in this violence 

15 qualifies for the imposition of sanctions under the 

16 Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act 

17 (subtitle F of title XII of the National Defense Au18 thorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016; 22 U.S.C. 

19 2656 note); and 

20 (5) affirms that— 

21 (A) the rights to freedom of assembly, as22 sociation, and expression, the freedom of the 

23 press, and freedom from extrajudicial detention 


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1 and violence, are universal human rights that 

2 apply to all persons; and 

3 (B) countries that fail to respect these 

4 rights jeopardize the security and prosperity of 

5 all of their citizens. 

Æ 


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