United States President Joe Biden issued an extensive proclamation on Tuesday banning officials of the Nicaraguan government from entering the United States in reaction to an election that Washington claims was manipulated in favor of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.
The travel prohibition covered all "elected officials" in Nicaragua, presumably including Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, as well as security forces, judges, mayors, and anyone perceived as subverting democracy in the Central American country.
"The Ortega government's authoritarian and abusive behavior, as well as those who support it, compel the United States to respond," Biden stated in the order.
Biden's directive came just a day after the US, UK, and Canada placed targeted restrictions on Nicaraguan officials in a coordinated response to the Nov. 7 election, which many countries have condemned as a farce.
Ortega, a former Marxist guerrilla leader, has referred to his American critics as "Yankee imperialists" who are attempting to sabotage Nicaragua's democratic process. Ortega has received support from Russia, Cuba and Venezuela.
After Ortega was re-elected for a fourth consecutive term, his political enemies from the West retaliated by imprisoning political opponents and cracking down on critical media.
Biden and his predecessor, Donald Trump, enforced sanctions, asset freezes, and travel bans on specific Nicaraguan officials, but these measures failed to deter Ortega, and many observers are skeptical that additional sanctions will have much of an impact on Ortega.
On Friday, the Organization of American States (OAS) passed a resolution declaring Nicaragua's election "illegitimate." Honduras, Mexico and Bolivia were among the 25 countries that voted in favor, with seven abstentions.
Biden said in his proclamation that he had determined it was in the best interests of the United States to ban entry to anyone who "formulates, implements, or benefits from policies or acts that undermine or harm democratic institutions or obstruct the return to democracy in Nicaragua."
His decree also prohibits their family members from entering the country.
Biden's declaration cited security personnel, asserting that they "abuse individuals in order to advance the Ortega government's authoritarian goal," and municipal authorities "directed violence against pro-democracy protesters."
The U.S. directive has accused the Nicaraguan judiciary of "aiding and abetting" politically motivated arrests.
U.S. officials have stated that more sanctions are in the pipeline, and that the administration aims to use additional provisions in a bill approved by the president last week to increase pressure on Ortega.
