Amid escalating concerns over the welfare of Bishop Juan Abelardo Mata Guevara, pressure mounts on Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s administration. The bishop, renowned for his advocacy, has vanished under contentious circumstances.
At 80, Bishop Mata, who is bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Estelí, navigates a precarious health landscape, having battled cancer and living with a pacemaker. His sudden disappearance has sparked international attention and worry for his well-being.
Though he stepped down in 2020, it is believed that his participation in a June mass, where he expressed solidarity with Nicaragua’s persecuted church, led to his arrest.
Nicaragua ranks as the 32nd most challenging country for Christians according to Open Doors, with a marked increase in religious persecution since the 2018 anti-government protests.
Reports suggest Bishop Mata was detained on June 29 and supposedly released to his home by July 4, under constant watch. However, supporters fear he remains under tight surveillance, or worse, is not at his home at all.
Disparate narratives emerge regarding the reasons for his capture. Some claim it stems from his mass comments, while others speculate on issues related to his “origin of properties and family ties.”
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights expressed alarm, labeling the concealment of detainees’ whereabouts a severe form of repression in Nicaragua.
In exile, Nicaraguan lawyer and activist Martha Patricia Molina denounced the situation to ACI Prensa, asserting, “The forced disappearance of Bishop Juan Abelardo Mata is a serious matter; this constitutes a crime against humanity committed by agents of the Ortega-Murillo dictatorship. He has been missing for 19 days, and the co-dictators have not made any further statements on the matter.”
Molina highlighted the unverified claims regarding the bishop’s return home. “No one in his circle has any news of him, and concern among the laity and the Catholic Church in general is even greater due to the medical conditions he suffers from, conditions that are almost certainly not being treated properly,” she remarked.
This article was originally written by www.christiantoday.com
