Nicaragua Strips Hundreds of Lawyers of Licenses in Crackdown on Critics.

Nicaragua's government has revoked the licences of dozens of lawyers without explanation, according to human rights advocates. Critics describe the move as the latest step in the government's crackdown on its opponents.

According to Reed Brody, an American human rights lawyer and member of a United Nations panel of experts on Nicaragua, a number of lawyers recently discovered that their licences had been removed from the Supreme Court of Justice's registry without prior notification or explanation.

Among those affected is lawyer and human rights defender Juan Diego Barberena, who has lived in exile in Costa Rica since 2022. He said he is aware of at least 25 other lawyers whose legal licences were also revoked.

Barberena said that when he checked the government's online database, both his name and licence number had been removed from the registry.

The Nicaraguan government has not issued an official statement on the matter and did not respond to requests for comment.

The latest development follows years of political repression after mass anti-government protests in 2018 were violently suppressed. Since then, authorities have imprisoned political opponents, religious leaders, journalists and civil society figures, forcing thousands to flee the country.

During the same period, hundreds of people have been stripped of their Nicaraguan citizenship and property, while more than 5,000 non-governmental organisations—primarily religious groups, as well as community and volunteer organisations—have been shut down.