Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Nicaragua
Religion or Belief: Christian – Catholic
Date of Detainment: July/26/2024
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: Yes
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Reason for Persecution: Religious Activity Religious Association Religious Belief Religious Figure & Religious Leadership Role
Frutos Constantino Valle Salmerón
Extra Bio Info:
Frutos Constantino Valle Salmerón is detained for his religious association and leadership role.
On July 26, 2024, Nicaraguan police arrested Salmerón, a priest and the administrator of the Diocese of Estelí. Salmerón's arrest occurred after police informed him that the Diocese's priestly ordination of three deacons, scheduled for July 27, 2024, was prohibited.
Publicly Available Information:
Gender: Female
Perpetrator: Nicaragua
Religion or Belief: Christian – Catholic
Sentence: 10 years' imprisonment
Date of Detainment: December//2023
Date of Sentencing: March/19/2024
Date of Release: September/5/2024
Current Status: Released
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment
Reason for Persecution: Religious Association
Nature of Charges: Embezzlement & Fraud
Maricarmen Espinosa Segura
Extra Bio Info:
Maricarmen Espinosa Segura is imprisoned for her association with Puerta de la Montaña Ministry.
In December 2023, the Nicaraguan authorities arrested Espinosa, an attorney providing legal support to Puerta de la Montaña Ministry, on dubious money laundering charges. Espinosa’s arrest occurred amid a crackdown on religious communities, including the arbitrary arrest of 11 pastors affiliated with Puerta de la Montaña Ministry.
On March 19, 2024, Espinosa was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment and fined $80 million. She was also prohibited from practicing law and serving as a notary public for 10 years.
On September 5, 2024, the Nicaraguan government exiled Segura to Guatemala.
Related cases: Manuel de Jesús Ríos Flores, Marcos Sergio Hernández Jirón, Harry Lening Rios Bravo, José Luis Orozco Urrutia, Álvaro Daniel Escobar Cabrera, Juan Carlos Chavarría Zapata, Juan Luis Moncada, Orvin Alexis Moncada Castellano, César Facundo Burgalin Miranda, Walner Omier Blandón Ochoa, Marisela de Fátima Mejía Ruiz
Publicly Available Information:
- Photo attributed to ADF International and Mountain Gateway Order, Inc.
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"These are 131 of 135 Nicaraguans Released from Prison and Banished to Guatemala" Confidencial
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"Violaciones y abusos de los derechos humanos contra miembros de la Iglesia católica y otras denominaciones cristianas en Nicaragua - Grupo de Expertos en Derechos Humanos sobre Nicaragua" United Nations Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua
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"Régimen de Ortega condena a miembros de Puerta de la Montaña e impone multa individual por US $80 millones" Articulo 66
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"Juez declara culpables a miembros de Puerta de la Montaña" La Prensa
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"Ministerio Público informa sobre los avances de la investigación del caso Puerta de la Montaña" El 19 Digital
Aug 9, 2024
Ten years ago, the self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) launched a campaign of mass atrocities to achieve the religious and ethnic cleansing of religious minority groups in Iraq and Syria. In 2016, the U.S. State Department determined ISIS’s atrocities against Yazidis, Christians, and Shi’a Muslims constituted crimes against humanity and genocide. Ten years on, survivors face multiple threats to their religious freedom, security, and existence within their homelands.
Today, Ambassador David Saperstein, former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, and the Hon. Frank Wolf, former U.S. Representative (R-VA 10th) and former Commissioner at the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), join USCIRF Senior Policy Analyst Susan Bishai. They share their firsthand insight into the United States’ response to ISIS’s genocide and crimes against humanity, as well as offer recommendations for the U.S. to support religious freedom for the surviving communities, ten years on.
Listen to USCIRF’s first podcast in this series commemorating the tenth anniversary of ISIS’s genocide. Read USCIRF’s 2024 Annual Report Chapter on Iraq and view USCIRF's Hearing on Religious Minorities & Governance in Iraq.