On September 29, 2023, indigenous leader Brooklyn Rivera Bryan was arbitrarily detained. Since then, family members and human rights organizations have repeatedly requested proof of life for the Miskito politician.

Due to international pressure, the dictatorship showed Rivera hospitalized and emaciated. According to a statement released by the Ministry of the Interior, his condition is critical due to multiple organ failure, and he is receiving respiratory assistance and intravenous feeding.

Various indigenous and Afro-descendant organizations issued a joint statement denouncing Rivera’s situation, holding the State of Nicaragua and Lumberto Campbell, coordinator of the secretariat for Caribbean Coast affairs and one of the most influential figures in the region, responsible.

The disappearance of political opponents is a common practice of the Nicaraguan dictatorship. The United Nations has documented cases where the whereabouts of the victims remain unknown for months or years, causing immense anguish for their families.

The police deny having arrested them, although in all cases, the victims are imprisoned without the right to a defense or contact with their families. The United Nations also reports torture and deaths in custody.

At least five political prisoners have died in the dictatorship’s jails since 2019. One of the most emblematic cases was that of Hugo Torres, a former Sandinista guerrilla who was imprisoned in 2021. He died in custody in 2022 due to unsanitary prison conditions and lack of medical care.

In 2019, political prisoner Eddy Montes Praslin was shot by guards inside La Modelo prison. To date, his case remains unsolved.

Former Sandinista Revolution commander and former Ortega ally, Bayardo Arce, remained missing from July 2025 until March 2026. The dictatorship published photographs of him where he appears visibly emaciated.

The case of indigenous leader Brooklyn Rivera, bedridden after being missing for 970 days, demonstrates the cruelty of a dictatorship determined to eliminate any trace of dissent.