Catholic Poet Carlos Bojorge Imprisoned by Ortega Regime

A day before Carlos Bojorge was arrested, he celebrated his 22nd birthday. He spent the morning listening to trova music and receiving congratulations for his next trip around the sun. He felt happy and at peace with God, as he had written on his Facebook account on January 1, 2024, just a couple of hours before he was kidnapped by Daniel Ortega's dictatorship. 

"Sometimes I have bad moments and I get totally discouraged, but then I remember that with my baptism in the Church I have been entrusted with a mission. So I wipe my tears and move on," the young college student shared. 

In what would be his last post on Facebook, Bojorge recalled that there were two things he could never give up: "Poetry, as a way to denounce [injustice], and Christianity, as a means to act." 

So that day Bojorge got ready to participate in the procession of Jesus in the Sacrament, known as the men's procession. This was the third consecutive year that the procession took place inside the cathedral of Managua. 

Bojorge wore a light blue long-sleeved shirt, open in front to reveal a t-shirt of the Virgin Mary. In his hands he carried a small picture of Monsignor Oscar Arnulfo Romero and a small Nicaraguan flag. When he left the cathedral, at about eight o'clock that evening, he was detained by police officers who took him away without an arrest warrant to an unknown destination. 

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) learned that Bojorge had shouted in the church: "Long live the Catholic Church!"

Noting that Bojorge's family spent several weeks without knowing where he was, the IACHR issued precautionary measures for him in a resolution published on March 6. 

Poet, altar boy and university student 

Bojorge is known for his poetry, a love he found when he was only eight years old. According to a 2020 interview on Channel 9, he was already the author of 25 poems and other stories and chronicles, and an admirer of the Nicaraguan poet and novelist Gioconda Belli. 

"My big dreams are to travel to Spain and to publish my first writings here in Managua," he said, and then also noted that he would like his work to be known internationally as well, "so everyone knows there's a young man crying out about what is happening in Nicaragua and around the world." 

The young poet is a student at the University of Managua, where he was studying law. He also has a technical degree in Business Administration. At the end of 2023, he participated in a youth meeting for democracy organized by the group Democracy in Action of Honduras. 

According to his social media, Bojorge has had a close relationship with the Catholic Church since he was a child. He was an altar boy in his parish. In some of his photos he can be seen standing next to the auxiliary bishop of Managua, Monsignor Silvio Báez. 

"Go look for him at the morgue" 

"On January 2, 2024, people associated with Bojorge went to the Auxiliary Judicial Complex 'Evaristo Vásquez Sánchez,' known as 'el Nuevo Chipote,' to ask about his whereabouts and the reasons for his detention. They were told that he was not being detained there. They were advised to inquire at the Managua Police District 3 Station," the IACHR said.

Family members went that same day to the District 3 station. The police confirmed that Bojorge had been detained there for a few hours, but that he was transferred that day to the Jorge Navarro National Penitentiary, known as "La Modelo."

His family members went to La Modelo on January 7, but were not given any information. Fifteen days later, on January 22, they returned to ask for him. They were told to "look for him at the [Forensic Medicine] morgue."

Martha Patricia Molina, a lawyer and researcher who is familiar with the case, reported on her social media that Bojorge is being held in La Modelo prison, specifically in Gallery 2. 

"[Bojorge] receives cruel, inhumanne or degrading treatment on a daily basis," she denounced. 

Bojorge is being held in the same cell as four young men who were posting flyers denouncing the dictatorship, but who are being accused of crimes they did not commit, revealed Molina.

This article was published in Spanish in Confidencial and translated by our staff. To get the most relevant news from our English coverage delivered straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Dispatch.