Managua, May 8 (EFE).- Supporters of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega will take to the streets in Managua on Wednesday to defend the government, while on the same day university students will also demonstrate against it, in the midst of a prolonged sociopolitical crisis that has claimed the lives of at least 47 people.
The “April 19 Student Movement,” a group of university students protesting against the Ortega government, has called for a mass demonstration for Wednesday and invited peasants, private sector and civil society to join them to demand justice for the dead as well as the democratization of the Central American country.
The demonstration, whose starting point will be around the Cathedral of Managua with the slogan “For Justice and Democratization of Nicaragua,” will begin at 2pm (20:00 GMT) and will conclude at the Cristo Rey roundabout.
Meanwhile, the Nicaraguan government also urged “every Nicaraguan family to call for peace and love” on Wednesday at 4pm (22.00 GMT) on the “Bolivar a Chavez” Avenue, under the slogan “No to Violence, Nicaragua wants Peace.”
Hundreds of Sandinista sympathizers have been gathering since last week in avenues, roundabouts and public squares with red and black flags to support Ortega and his wife and vice president, Rosario Murillo.
The supporters march is also backing the government’s initiative to hold dialogue with the private sector through the mediation of the Catholic Church to overcome the crisis.
Nicaragua is going through a crisis that is now 21 days old, due to massive demonstrations for and against President Ortega, starting with protests against social security reforms which continued despite Ortega’s reversal of those changes.
Violent clashes during the protests have caused at least 47 deaths, mostly between April 18 and 22, according to the Nicaraguan Centre for Human Rights (CENIDH), while other humanitarian organizations raised the death toll to 63.
Nicaragua is awaiting the start of the dialogue between the government and the private sector, with the Episcopal Conference of Nicaragua (CEN) as mediator, although the date has not yet been set.