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As the dialogue between the government of Nicaragua and opposition sectors reached a halt, Luis Almagro, secretary general of the Organization of American States (OAS) has insisted, siding with the opposition, that Nicaragua needs to call for early elections while the Episcopal Conference proposed the creation of a 'Mixed Commission' betting on dialogue.
OPINION:
Nicaragua: Extortion, Dialogue And A Longing for Peace
Trough a video published by the OAS Wednesday Almagro said “regarding a political resolution to this situation we have insisted that it must be electoral, without exclusions, without habilitations, with a fair and transparent electoral process.”
What Almagro is supporting is what the opposition has demanded, causing the impasse.
President Daniel Ortega’s government believes the demand exceeds what can be considered part of a peaceful dialogue. Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said the opposition was using the dialogues to push "toward a soft coup."
Despite Almagro’s calls, the Episcopal Conference has argued for the creation of a six-member commission to achieve a consensus on the proposals put forward by both parties before reapproaching the negotiations.
The commission would consist of six people: three government representatives, and one from the universities, civil society and business sector.
The Nicaraguan political crisis began in mid-April, when protesters took to the streets against a proposed social security reform that sought to overcome the system’s financial crisis by increasing contribution by both employees and employers to avoid increasing the retirement age.
Employers would have faced a 3.5 percent hike while workers a 0.75 percent hike.
The protests were initially called against these reforms, but after violence ensued protesters began calling for President Ortega to step down.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights carried out an investigation revealing 76 people were killed during the protests. The Ortega government accepted some of the points of the commission's reports and rejected others arguing that's some needed to be further investigation.
Reports of excessive force by state security forces and by protesters who burned down public building and carried homemade mortar are yet to be investigated fully.
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