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 mur-
ders committed by the Government of Nicaragua against 
its citizens. 
Whereas Daniel Ortega has taken systematic steps to weaken 
democratic institutions in Nicaragua since 2006, includ-
ing by violating the Nicaraguan Constitution through ac-
tions 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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Whereas, on April 18, 2018, students in Nicaragua began to 
protest the unilateral decision of the Government of Nica-
ragua to impose reforms on the Nicaraguan Social Secu-
rity Institute; 
Whereas the protests were met with a violent and brutal re-
sponse from the Nicaraguan National Police, subse-
quently resulting in a widespread call by the Nicaraguan 
people for freedom, democracy, electoral reforms, and re-
spect 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 es-
calating 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 govern-
ment 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 Bu-
reau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the De-
partment 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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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 inde-
pendent 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 con-
tinued to advise travelers to reconsider travel to Nica-
ragua due to ongoing violence; 
Whereas, on April 22, 2018, the Department of State issued 
a statement that ‘‘we condemn the violence and the ex-
cessive 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 au-
thorized 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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international community in international fora’’ in re-
sponse 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 doz-
ens, merely for peacefully protesting’’; 
Whereas, on June 7, 2018, the Department of State an-
nounced visa restrictions against individuals involved in 
human rights abuses or undermining democracy in Nica-
ragua; 
Whereas, on June 20, 2018, the Department of State an-
nounced, ‘‘The United States condemns the ongoing gov-
ernment-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 in-
jured, and 156 people continue to be disappeared; 
Whereas the Catholic Church has played an important role 
serving as a mediator between protesters and the Govern-
ment 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 Invest-
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ment Conditionality Act, on October 3, 2017, by unani-
mous consent: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) condemns the violence, persecution, intimi-
dation, and murders of peaceful protesters by the 
Government of Nicaragua; 
(2) supports the people of Nicaragua in their 
pursuit for democracy, including their call for free 
and fair elections overseen by credible domestic and 
international observers; 
(3) urges the international community to stand 
in solidarity with the people of Nicaragua; 
(4) calls on the United States to continue to 
condemn the atrocities in Nicaragua, demand the re-
lease of individuals wrongfully detained, and identify 
those individuals whose involvement in this violence 
qualifies for the imposition of sanctions under the 
Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act 
(subtitle F of title XII of the National Defense Au-
thorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016; 22 U.S.C. 
2656 note); and 
(5) affirms that— 
(A) the rights to freedom of assembly, as-
sociation, and expression, the freedom of the 
press, and freedom from extrajudicial detention 
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and violence, are universal human rights that 
apply to all persons; and 
(B) countries that fail to respect these 
rights jeopardize the security and prosperity of 
all of their citizens. 
Æ 
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