Haydée Castillo Flores

Cases
Location of case in SG report
2019-078-005
Relevant SG report
Year of the report
2019
Country Geolocation

Latitude: 12.865416

Longitude: -85.207229

Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
Nicaragua
From Region
UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report
  • UN Special Procedures: Thematic
Dates of prior UN action
5 November 2018
Type of record
Named individual
Gender
Female
Was the victim a foreign national?
No
Was the victim a minor?
No
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

those who regularly share information on human rights violations with OHCHR

Dates of engagement
Unclear
Type of attempted engagement
  • Submission of information to UN
Dates of mentioned reprisals
Between June 2018 and May 2019
Reprisal information

harassment and persecution: Those affected have reported threats, harassments and smear campaigns on social media. Their homes and families have been under surveillance by police officers and pro-government armed elements. In some instances, their relatives suffered attacks against their life and personal integrity.

In 12 of the 23 cases, victims were arrested or had arrest warrants issued against them: unclear whether applicable to this case.

Types of reprisals suffered
  • Defamation / Defamation campaign
  • Family/friends/acquaintances targeted
  • Online harassment
  • Surveillance
  • Threats/Intimidations (incl. "fear of reprisal")
Alleged/likely perpetrators
Both state and non-state actors
Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
No
Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
No
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?
1
In which SG report was this case followed up on? 0
2024
Follow up information provided in SG report 0
  1. The cases of Mr. Guillermo Gonzalo Carrión Maradiaga and Ms. Haydee Isabel Castillo Flores were included in the 2019 report149 of the Secretary-General on allegations of vilification by public officials, criminalization, and surveillance for sharing information on human rights violations with OHCHR. Mr. Carrion is a lawyer and human rights defender who was the legal director of the now dissolved Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (CENIDH) and founder of the Human Rights Collective Nicaragua Never Again. Ms. Castillo is a woman human rights defender with the now dissolved Instituto de Liderazgo de Las Segovias-ILLS and Nicaragüenses en el Mundo (NEEM).
  2. On 18 September 2023, mandate holders addressed allegations of judicial harassment of human rights defenders, including Mr. Carrion and Ms. Castillo. On 15 February 2023, the Court of Appeals of Managua applied Special Laws 1055150 and 1145151 to 94 individuals stripping them of their nationality and confiscating their assets in the country after they were declared traitors to the homeland, including Mr. Carrión and Ms. Castillo. On 9 and 11 May 2023, the Supreme Court of Justice, in two different resolutions, disbarred 26 lawyers and notaries, one of whom was Mr. Carrion, as a consequence of the application of Special Law 1145 (NIC 3/2023).
Followup Trends 0
Deterioration/further reprisals
Date of follow up 0
18 September 2023
Did the government respond? 0
No
Was this case followed up by a UN body? 0
  • UN Special Procedures: UN Special Procedures - General