Deported Nicaraguan politician Felix Maradiaga also questioned the photos. He indicated that this is “an attempt to change the narrative and give the impression of supposedly normal treatment of the unjustly imprisoned bishop.”
“However, the truth is undeniable: Monsignor Álvarez and the arbitrarily arrested priests must be free, and no photograph can erase that arbitrariness or the inhuman and humiliating treatment to which the kidnapped priests and all political prisoners are being subjected,” he said. .
Bishop Álvarez, 57, Bishop of Matagalpa and Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Estelí, is a critic of human rights violations in his country. In addition, he played a crucial role in mediating the Nicaraguan Episcopal Conference during the unsuccessful dialogue process following the massive protests of April 2018.
Currently, more than 500 days have passed since he was kidnapped and his physical condition shows notable deterioration.