Nicaraguan dictatorship
bans Bibles from entering the country
his latest restriction unfolds against a grim backdrop. Since 2018,
Nicaragua has witnessed a systematic rollback of civil liberties
diciembre 17, 2025 11:19Enrique VillegasReligious Freedom
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(ZENIT News / Managua, 12.17.2025).- At Nicaragua’s borders, a new and
largely unpublicized line has been drawn. It is not only weapons,
drones, or sensitive equipment that now risk confiscation, but printed
words themselves. Among them, the Bible.
Travelers heading to Managua from neighboring Costa Rica are being
warned before boarding buses that books, magazines, newspapers, and even
religious texts may not be allowed into the country. Notices posted at
bus terminals and advisories circulated by regional transport companies
urge passengers to leave such items behind to avoid problems at the
border. According to multiple transport operators, the restriction has
been quietly enforced for several months.
For human rights advocates, the ban is not an isolated administrative
decision but another piece in a broader pattern of state control.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a UK-based organization that monitors
freedom of religion or belief, has denounced the measure as part of
Nicaragua’s sustained campaign against independent religious life and
free expression. The organization has called on the country’s
authorities to reverse the policy immediately, warning that the
prohibition of sacred texts signals a deepening hostility toward
spiritual autonomy.
The mechanics of the ban are deceptively simple. Transport companies
operating routes from Costa Rica and Honduras to Nicaragua have updated
their lists of prohibited items, placing Bibles and other printed
materials alongside drones, cameras, and certain consumer goods.
Representatives from several regional bus operators have confirmed that
the policy originates not with the companies themselves but with
Nicaraguan authorities, who retain wide discretion at border crossings.
The symbolism, however, is anything but simple. In a country where
Christianity remains woven into family life and cultural memory,
restricting the entry of religious texts carries a weight that extends
beyond logistics. Critics argue that controlling access to books,
especially sacred ones, is a way of narrowing the moral and intellectual
space in which citizens can operate, particularly at a time when
churches have been among the few remaining institutions capable of
mobilizing independent voices.
This latest restriction unfolds against a grim backdrop. Since 2018,
Nicaragua has witnessed a systematic rollback of civil liberties.
Thousands of independent civil society organizations have lost their
legal status, including well over a thousand religious groups. Clergy
and lay leaders have faced surveillance, harassment, and detention,
while public religious events and processions have been sharply
curtailed or outright banned unless aligned with official approval.
Nicaraguan dictatorship bans Bibles from entering the country | ZENIT - English Nicaraguan dictatorship bans Bibles from entering the country his latest restriction unfolds against a grim backdrop.
Since 2018, Nicaragua has witnessed a systematic rollback of civil liberties diciembre 17, 2025
(ZENIT News / Managua, 12.17.2025).- At Nicaragua’s borders, a new and largely unpublicized line has been drawn. It is not only weapons, drones, or sensitive equipment that now risk confiscation, but printed words themselves. Among them, the Bible. Travelers heading to Managua from neighboring Costa Rica are being warned before boarding buses that books, magazines, newspapers, and even religious texts may not be allowed into the country. Notices posted at bus terminals and advisories circulated by regional transport companies urge passengers to leave such items behind to avoid problems at the border.
According to multiple transport operators, the restriction has been quietly enforced for several months. For human rights advocates, the ban is not an isolated administrative decision but another piece in a broader pattern of state control. Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a UK-based organization that monitors freedom of religion or belief, has denounced the measure as part of Nicaragua’s sustained campaign against independent religious life and free expression.
The organization has called on the country’s authorities to reverse the policy immediately, warning that the prohibition of sacred texts signals a deepening hostility toward spiritual autonomy. The mechanics of the ban are deceptively simple. Transport companies operating routes from Costa Rica and Honduras to Nicaragua have updated their lists of prohibited items, placing Bibles and other printed materials alongside drones, cameras, and certain consumer goods. Representatives from several regional bus operators have confirmed that the policy originates not with the companies themselves but with Nicaraguan authorities, who retain wide discretion at border crossings.
The symbolism, however, is anything but simple. In a country where Christianity remains woven into family life and cultural memory, restricting the entry of religious texts carries a weight that extends beyond logistics. Critics argue that controlling access to books, especially sacred ones, is a way of narrowing the moral and intellectual space in which citizens can operate, particularly at a time when churches have been among the few remaining institutions capable of mobilizing independent voices. This latest restriction unfolds against a grim backdrop. Since 2018, Nicaragua has witnessed a systematic rollback of civil liberties. Thousands of independent civil society organizations have lost their legal status, including well over a thousand religious groups. Clergy and lay leaders have faced surveillance, harassment, and detention, while public religious events and processions have been sharply curtailed or outright banned unless aligned with official approval.
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