The Nicaraguan Ministry of the Interior (formerly the Ministry of the Interior) on Tuesday cancelled the legal status of the Radio Maria Association, a radio station belonging to the Catholic Church, according to a statement publication issued in La Gaceta, the official newspaper.
The NGO regulator alleged alleged financial breaches by the broadcaster, which had been legally established for 24 years.
The Interior Ministry also ordered the transfer of the station’s assets to the name of the State of Nicaragua, as well as 11 other NGOs that were cancelled on Tuesday.
Radio María did not immediately comment on the government’s measure or on the impact it will have.
The cancellation of the radio station’s legal status comes days after it announced a reduction in its broadcasting hours as a result of an “unjustified” blockage of its bank accounts, as described by the radio station’s general coordinator, Róger Munguía.
Nicaragua has been experiencing a socio-political crisis for six years, since protests against President Daniel Ortega began.
Ortega has called the Catholic Church a “coup plotter” for hosting protesters in its churches in 2018 and has since persecuted priests, nuns and lay people, according to human rights organizations.
The United States Department of State has included Nicaragua in a list of nations that violate religious freedom.
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