Since September 2020, the Nicaraguan government has been pressuring Catholic priests by canceling their residences and/or preventing them from returning to the country. The Franciscan priest José Lemus Aguilar, parish priest of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, of the diocese of Matagalpa, traveled to El Salvador, however, in February he could not return to …
On January 22, after ten days in detention and being held incommunicado, Cuban pastor Karel Parra Rosabal was released from a police unit in Jobabo, Las Tunas. The pastor was arrested after a violent search at his home in front of his wife and children, under the crime of “hoarding.” In the process, the police …
Venezuela has been the scene of violent incidents that were targeted at Christian leaders and places of worship. Multiple religious leaders have been killed and robberies have been occurring in the last months. Brother Luigi Manganiello, the headmaster of the La Salle religious institute died on January 6th as a result of the injuries he …
Cardinal Leopold José Brenes announced that a total of $61,836.65 and C$1,454,305.58 córdobas was raised for victims of hurricanes Eta and Iota that struck Nicaragua between November 3rd and 16th. Official figures indicate that 3 million people were exposed to the effects of both hurricanes, approximately 46% of the population. And that, the damages and …
On the 18th of November, a humanitarian aid brigade was attacked by members of a paramilitary group in the community of Tabak, Aldama, Chiapas, Mexico. As a result of this attack, María Isabel Hernández Rea, a nun, was shot in her right leg and needed to be treated in the hospital for her injuries. The …
This comment was written by Thomas de Bruin, an intern with OLIRE. On October 12th, 2020, the interim report of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Ahmed Shaheed, was released. In his report he focused on multiple aspects of the right to religious freedom and belief. The Special Rapporteur stated that, based …
Cuban pastor Alain Toledano Valiente reported through his Facebook account that someone had broken into his home on November 8. When his wife and daughter were alone at home, a man shouted at the house and tried to tear off the entrance gate. He also reported that this was not the first time incidents like these …
The Cuban authorities have demolished the church of the Assemblies of God in Abel Santamaría, a municipality of Santiago de Cuba, after months of negotiations. This is another example of the religious intolerance of the Cuban government. The official statement of the authorities claims that the church and other houses in the area had to …
In October 2020, Religious Freedom for Cuba reported that the Jehovah Shalom Church in East Holguin has been shut down. According to the organization the pastors Uberney Aguilar and Yalina Proenza have received threats from the Government and Communist Party officials at least 6 times. The threats demanded them to stop their work for the …
Catholic churches in Nicaragua are financially drowning due to high electricity and water bills. This was confirmed by Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes, Archbishop of Managua and President of the Episcopal Conference of Nicaragua. He stated that electricity and water bills are actually high, despite the fact that there are no activities in the church due to …
