Vilma Nuñez de Escorcia

Cases
Location of case in SG report
2020-089-001
Relevant SG report
Year of the report
2020
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

of the Centro Nicaragüense de Derechos Humanos (CENIDH)

Type of rights defended
  • Unclear in SG Report
Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
No
Reported trigger of reprisal

One month earlier, on 22 May 2019, Ms. Nuñez de Escorcia had met with the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Panama, a meeting made public through social media.

Engagement with UN body
  • UN Special Procedures: thematic
  • UN (Dep.) High Commissioner on Human Rights
Dates of engagement
March 2019; 22 May 2019
Type of attempted engagement
  • Other
  • UN raised case of person/organization
Dates of mentioned reprisals
21 June 2019
Reprisal information

on 21 June 2019, two police officers in civilian clothing arrived at the entrance of the residential complex of Ms. Vilma Nuñez de Escorcia, of the Centro Nicaragüense de Derechos Humanos (CENIDH), to ask questions about her to the residential guards

Types of reprisals suffered
  • 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
Was the case raised by a State at the UN?
Yes
Which State raised the case at the UN and when?

In August 2021, BENELUX raised the case at the 48th session of the Human Rights Council during the Interactive Dialogue with the Assistant Secretary-General under item 5: 'To ensure accountability the Benelux wishes to express our particular concern about the following cases of reprisals:• In Nicaragua, the reprisals against Ms. de Escorcia, Mr Toruño, Mr. Caarmona and Mr. Jonathan López, indicate continued harassment of civil society and media in the run-up to the elections in November.'

In September 2023, BENELUX raised the case at the 54th session of the Human Rights Council during the Interactive Dialogue with the Assistant Secretary-General on the report on reprisals for cooperation with the UN: 'In order to ensure accountability the Benelux finds it important that specific cases of reprisals and intimidation receive public attention. Therefore, we wish to express our particular concern about the following grave cases: 4. Comisión Permanente de Derechos Humanos and its staff, Mr. Félix Alejandro Maradiaga, Mr. Aníbal Toruño and Ms. Vilma Nuñez de Escorcia in Nicaragua.'

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?
No
How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
3
In which SG report was this case followed up on? 0
2021
Follow up information provided in SG report 0
  1. The case of Ms. Vilma Nuñez de Escorcia, of the Centro Nicaragüense de Derechos Humanos (CENIDH), was included in the 2020 report of the Secretary-General 210 on allegations of harassment following her engagement with the High Commissioner and concerns expressed about the situation of CENIDH by various UN actors (NIC 4/2021). The February 2021 report of the High Commissioner noted that CENIDH and nine other civil society organizations continue to be deprived of their legal registration for alleged administrative omissions or activities contrary to their statutory purposes, including providing support to “terrorist actions” (A/HRC/46/21, paras. 18–20). Their assets have been liquidated and disposed of by the Government. Six of the nine organizations challenged the withdrawal of their legal registration before the Supreme Court of Justice, whose decision remained pending as of December 2020 (para. 18).
  2. On 25 February 2021, Ms. Nuñez briefed the Human Rights Council about the human rights situation in Nicaragua, including about its COVID-19 response. According to information received by OHCHR, on 8 April 2021, while Ms. Nuñez was receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, unknown individuals took unauthorized pictures of her that were disseminated with stigmatizing messages on social media. The messages labeled Ms. Nuñez as “opportunist” for being vaccinated by the same Government whose response to the pandemic she had criticized publicly.211
Followup Trends 0
Deterioration/further reprisals
Date of follow up 0
February 2021
Did the government respond? 0
No
Was this case followed up by a UN body? 0
  • UN (Dep.) High Commissioner on Human Rights
In which SG report was this case followed up on? 1
2023
Follow up information provided in SG report 1
  1. The case of Ms. Vilma Nuñez de Escorcia, of the Centro Nicaragüense de Derechos Humanos (CENIDH), was included in the 2020 and 2021 reports of the Secretary-General139 on allegations of harassment following her engagement with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2019 and concerns expressed about the situation of CENIDH by various UN actors.140 The CENIDH and nine other civil society organizations were the first to be deprived of their legal personality in 2019 for alleged administrative omissions or activities contrary to their statutory purposes, including providing support to “terrorist activities”. Their assets were liquidated and disposed of by the authorities. According to information received by OHCHR, on 15 February 2023, the Managua Court of Appeals issued a decision stripping Ms. Núñez de Escorcia and 92 other individuals of theirnationality, declared them “fugitives from justice, and requested the confiscation of their properties. This decision was not taken as part of a criminal trial or any other legal procedure.
Followup Trends 1
Deterioration/further reprisals
Did the government respond? 1
No
In which SG report was this case followed up on? 2
2024
Follow up information provided in SG report 2
  1. The case of Ms. Vilma Núñez de Escorcia, an 85-year-old woman human rights defender and head of the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (CENIDH), was included in the 2020, 2021 and 2023 reports of the Secretary-General152 on allegations of harassment, police surveillance and denial of healthcare services following her engagement with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2019. On 15 February 2023, the Managua Court of Appeals stripped Ms. Núñez of her nationality, declared her “fugitive from justice,” and requested the confiscation of her properties.
  2. In its 2023 report to the Human Rights Council, the Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua referred to the situation of Ms. Núñez as an emblematic case of persecution of and pressure to leave the country on those perceived as opposing the authorities. The Group of Experts noted that by remaining in the country in a situation of statelessness, Ms. Núñez suffers the daily denial of all her human rights, for instance her pension was cancelled, and her marriage is non-existent before the law. Experts also noted that Ms. Nuñez is a victim of constant harassment and surveillance (A/HRC/55/CRP.3, para. 107).153
  3. The Group of Experts reported that Ms. Núñez filed an appeal against Special Law No. 1145 arguing that it is unconstitutional, the receipt of which was acknowledged by the clerk of the Supreme Court of Justice, but at the time of writing had not been processed. In May 2023, Ms. Núñez also filed a writ of amparo against the National Council of Administration and Judicial Career of the Supreme Court of Justice against her disbarment from the professions of lawyer and public notary. On 26 May 2023, the First Civil Chamber of the Court of Appeals of Managua decided not to admit the appeal for amparo due to the fact that Ms. Núñez lost her Nicaraguan nationality and her rights as citizen (A/HRC/55/CRP.3, para. 143).
Followup Trends 2
Deterioration/further reprisals
Date of follow up 2
2023
Did the government respond? 2
No
Was this case followed up by a UN body? 2
  • UN Human Rights Council: UN Independent Investigation