(Reuters) – La Prensa, Nicaragua’s only print newspaper, said on Thursday that it would no longer issue a print edition, complaining that the administration of President Daniel Ortega was withholding the paper it uses for publishing.
La Prensa, which the government considers to be a mouthpiece for the opposition, had already reduced the size of its editions and its circulation since the Nicaraguan customs authority in 2019 first began withholding paper.
The newspaper, which will continue to publish news online, blamed what it called the “dictatorship” of Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, for cutting off the paper supply.
“We won’t be able to do a print edition until they release our raw materials, but they won’t silence us,” the paper said on its front page. “The website and the social networks of La Prensa will continue to provide news.”
The government and the General Directorate of Customs did not immediately reply to requests for comment from Reuters.
The Ortega administration has become increasingly isolated https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spain-recalls-ambassador-nicaragua-amid-deepening-political-crisis-2021-08-11 internationally over its crackdowns on domestic opposition and critical media. The government argues that it is protecting the country against intervention by foreign interests.
Reporters at La Prensa have for several months now stopped bylining stories, citing fear of reprisals by the government.
(Reporting by Ismael Lopez, Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)
