Tininiska Rivera Castellón

Cases
Location of case in SG report
2024-081-001
Relevant SG report
Year of the report
2024
Country Geolocation

Latitude: 12.865416

Longitude: -85.207229

Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
Nicaragua
From Region
Type of record
Named individual
Gender
Female
Was the victim a foreign national?
No
Was the victim a minor?
No
Individual's/organization's activity

Daughter of Brooklyn Rivera, Indigenous leader and at the time Deputy of the National Assembly for the YATAMA23 political party,

Type of rights defended
  • Indigenous peoples’ rights
Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
No
Reported trigger of reprisal

Participation at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues UNPFII), held in New York from 17–28 April 2023.

Engagement with UN body
  • UNPFII
Dates of engagement
April 2024
Type of attempted engagement
  • Participation in meeting on UN premises
Reprisal information
  1. On 17 April 2024, Ms. Tininiska Rivera Castellón, daughter of Mr. Brooklyn Rivera and indigenous human rights defender, delivered a statement at the 23rd Session of the UNPFII30 where she demanded proof of life of her father and his release. In her statement, she also noted having received threats at the Forum. According to information received by OHCHR, Ms. Rivera Castellón has been harassed and surveilled by the authorities since May 2023. Ms. Rivera Castellón has reportedly been dismissed from her job, had to interrupt her studies, and her bank accounts have been frozen.
Types of reprisals suffered
  • Administrative reprisal
  • Profession-related reprisal
  • Surveillance
  • Threats/Intimidations (incl. "fear of reprisal")
Alleged/likely perpetrators
State actors
Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
No
Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
Yes
Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
No
Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
No
Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
Yes
How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
1
In which SG report was this case followed up on? 0
2025
Follow up information provided in SG report 0
  1. The case of Mr. Brooklyn Rivera, Indigenous leader and at the time Deputy of the National Assembly for the YATAMA, was included in the 2024 report of the Secretary-General,103 on allegations that he was not allowed to return to Nicaragua following his participation in the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII). In September 2023, upon his clandestine return to the country, he was arbitrarily arrested and has since been held without charges or contact with his relatives. His daughter, Ms. Tininiska Rivera Castellón, was reportedly harassed and subject to surveillance following her statement at the 23rd Session of the UNPFII, where she demanded proof of life of her father and his release.104
  2. On 30 September 2024, OHCHR’s Regional Office for Central America called for Mr. Rivera’s immediate release.105 On 13 November 2024, during the interactive dialogue for the Universal Periodic Review of Nicaragua, the Government of Nicaragua acknowledged that Mr. Rivera’s parliamentary immunity had been lifted to allow an investigation into serious criminal offences, including treason, for which formal charges had already been brought against him. During the reporting period, his daughter was reportedly subjected to attempts to hack her private social media accounts, including one incident shortly before her participation in the Human Rights Council sessions in December 2024. On that occasion, she reportedly received a notification from a social media platform indicating that someone was trying to access her account. Additionally, in February, she reportedly received information that individuals with family ties to members of the Nicaraguan government were inquiring about her in the country where she had sought refuge. Reportedly, at the time of writing, Mr. Rivera’s family has not been informed of his whereabouts. Ms. Rivera has remained outside Nicaragua due to fear of persecution and further reprisals while advocating for her father’s release, including with the United Nations. On 9 December 2024 and on March 2025, OHCHR reiterated its call for Mr. Rivera’s release during the oral updates to the Human Rights Council.106
Followup Trends 0
Deterioration/further reprisals
Did the government respond? 0
No