Catholic bishop sentenced to decades in prison for treason after refusing exile to US: ‘Unbridled hatred’
Catholic bishop sentenced to decades in prison for treason after refusing exile to US: ‘Unbridled hatred’
Bishop Rolando Alvarez said he chose to remain in Nicaragua to protest the country’s treatment of Catholics
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A court in Nicaragua sentenced a Roman Catholic bishop to more than 26 years in prison for alleged treason after he refused to be exiled to the United States.
Rolando Alvarez, who serves as bishop of the country’s Matagalpa diocese, received his sentence last Friday and was also fined and stripped of his Nicaraguan citizenship, according to Reuters.
Among other charges, Alvarez was also convicted of undermining national integrity and spreading false news, the outlet reported.
Alvarez was among several priests and seminarians who were arrested last August as the government of Nicaragua clashed with the clerics of the Catholic Church who have criticized the regime.
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Alvarez was among several priests and seminarians who were arrested last August as the government of Nicaragua. (STR via Getty Images)
Alvarez refused to join four other priests and 222 other political prisoners who were expelled to the U.S. last Thursday as part of a prisoner exchange with the U.S. State Department, according to the Catholic News Agency.
The bishop said he chose to remain in his country in protest against other Catholics who are being persecuted by the Nicaraguan government.
Nicaraguan citizens hold a demonstration in front of San Jose’s Cathedral in Costa Rica to protest against the Nicaraguan government and the detention of Nicaraguan bishop and regime critic Rolando Alvarez, in San Jose, on Aug. 19, 2022. (EZEQUIEL BECERRA/AFP via Getty Images)
Nicaragua President Daniel Ortega derided the prisoners as “criminal mercenaries” working for foreign powers to undermine the sovereignty of the country, according to televised remarks.
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Alvarez has since been moved to La
