An elderly bishop, who has a pacemaker and is a cancer survivor, was subjected to short-term arbitrary detention on June 29 and 30 in Estelí, Nicaragua.

Bishop Juan Abelardo Mata Guevara serves as bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Estelí. The bishop retired in 2020 and had not made recent public appearances.

However, Mata Guevara accepted an invitation to celebrate Mass at La Cruz del Calvario Church on the evening of June 28. During the service, he referred to religious persecution in Nicaragua in his prayers, mentioning recent cases of prominent religious leaders forced into exile or under house arrest.  

It is believed these statements were reported by spies in churches who recorded homilies and prayers and reported them to the National Police. 

Mata Guevara was first detained by the National Police in the afternoon of June 29, according to a report from the United Kingdom-based group Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW). He was sent from Estelí to the El Chipote Maximum Security Prison in Managua.   

Authorities released him at 6:45 p.m. that evening, but arrested him again the following morning, holding him until 4 p.m. 

According to the National Catholic Reporter, the country’s interior ministry acknowledged Mata had been detained, but said in a July 4 statement that he “has returned to his home, where he remains in perfect condition.” The ministry’s statement made a vague allegation that Bishop Mata’s speech had violated national law.  

The National Police have maintained a presence outside Mata Guevara’s home since his release. There are concerns that he will be subjected to 24-hour surveillance and movement restrictions, as the authorities have done in other cases. 

CSW has documented 12 cases of arbitrary detentions of both Protestant and Roman Catholic leaders in Nicaragua during the last month alone.  

Dictatorial Rule in Nicaragua 

Nicaragua is ranked No. 32 on the Open Doors 2026 World Watch List of the 50 countries where Christian persecution is most extreme. According to the report, Christians are seen as “destabilizing agents” in the country and increasingly silenced under the dictatorial rule of Co-Presidents Daniel Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo. 

The repression has forced priests to self-censor their homilies, and many clergy have fled the country.   

Martha Patricia Molina, an exiled lawyer who tracks Nicaraguan Church repression, has counted more than 300 church leaders in exile. 

Story by Rebekah Belonga 

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