America

Ortega closes Cosep and its 18 business chambers

March 7, 2023
3 Min Read

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Through the Ministry of the Interior, the Ortega government closed 19 business associations, among which was the Superior Council of Private Enterprise (Cosep), the largest in the country. The decision of the autocratic regime is interpreted as a retaliation after breaking relations with the leaders of these chambers who began to turn their backs on it when the anti-government protests broke out in 2018.

The Government of Daniel Ortega canceled the legal status of the Superior Council of Private Enterprise (Cosep), the most important business association in Nicaragua that had been created 32 years ago.

The decision was published in the Official Gazette after being approved by the Minister of the Interior, María Amelia Coronel Kinloch. This is one of Ortega’s hardest blows against the business community.

In addition to Cosep, another 18 business chambers were dissolved, such as the Nicaraguan Mining Chamber Association (Caminic), made up of companies that extract and sell gold, the Central American country’s export product par excellence.

When the government released the 222 opposition prisoners, among whom were seven from Cosep, the union that was once an ally of Ortega, it thanked him for the release and said that it was “a big step to start unity,” he also acknowledged to the American people and government “for receiving them and offering them all the attention”.

A plane carrying some of the more than 200 political prisoners released in Nicaragua and transferred to the United States stands at the boarding gate at Dulles International Airport in Virginia, outside Washington, United States, in this image. Video taken on February 9, 2023.
A plane carrying some of the more than 200 political prisoners released in Nicaragua and transferred to the United States stands at the boarding gate at Dulles International Airport in Virginia, outside Washington, United States, in this image. Video taken on February 9, 2023. REUTERS – HANDOUT

Business sectors in neighboring Honduras, Costa Rica and Guatemala rejected Ortega’s decision.

The alliance between the president and Nicaragua’s top businessmen broke down after the bloody crackdown on anti-government protests in 2018 in which 318 people were killed by security forces, according to human rights groups.

Stock image. Hundreds of people protest in Monimbo Square to demand justice, democracy and the departure of President Daniel Ortega, in Masaya, Nicaragua on May 13, 2018.
Stock image. Hundreds of people protest in Monimbo Square to demand justice, democracy and the departure of President Daniel Ortega, in Masaya, Nicaragua on May 13, 2018. © AFP/Diana Ulloa

The last two Cosep presidents were arrested and convicted of treason in a trial that many international observers dismissed as political retaliation.

According to Minister Coronel, the chambers did not comply with the registration validation process and presented inconsistencies in the information such as variations in accounts that were not justified or did not report details of income and expenses.

“With these actions, these organizations do not promote transparency policies in the administration and management of their funds,” said the Ministry of the Interior, adding that “they have not reported financial statements for the fiscal year 2022.”

These is the list of dissolved chambers

  • Nicaraguan Association of Distributors of Pharmaceutical Products, Andiprofa.

  • Superior Council of Private Enterprise, Cosep

  • National Chamber of Tourism of Nicaragua, Canatur.

  • Chamber of Producers and Processors of African Palm, Capropalma.

  • Chamber of Industries of Nicaragua Cadin.

  • Association of Producers and Exporters of Nicaragua, Apen.

  • National Association of Poultry Farmers and Food Producers, Anapa.

  • Nicaraguan Association of Imported Vehicle Distributors, Andiva.

  • Nicaraguan Association of the Textile Industry, Anitec.

  • Chamber of Developers of Nicaragua, Cadur.

  • Nicaraguan Chamber of Construction, CNC.

  • Chamber of Fisheries Association of Nicaragua, Capenic,

  • Nicaraguan Coffee Exporters Association, Excan.

  • Nicaraguan Association of Formulators and Distributors of Agrochemicals, Anifoda.

  • Chamber of Microfinance, Asomif.

  • Nicaraguan Energy Chamber, CEN.

  • Union Association of Agricultural Producers, Upanic.

  • Chamber of Commerce and Services of Nicaragua, CCSN.

  • Mining Chamber Association of Nicaragua, Caminic

With Reuters, EFE and local media

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