Authorities in Nicaragua seize control over the San José de las Hermanas Giuseppines, a religious institution.
The San José College in Jinotepe, a Catholic school run by the Sisters of St. Joseph for over 40 years, was seized by the government of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo on August 12, 2025. The government accused the school of being a site where "coup-plotters tortured and murdered" during the 2018 anti-government protests, claims that are widely rejected by religious and independent observers.
Historically, San José College was a prominent Catholic institution offering education grounded in Christian faith and humanist values, run by the Congregation of the Josephine Sisters who have been present in Nicaragua since 1915. The confiscation is part of a broader pattern of government actions aimed at dismantling the Church's institutional presence in Nicaragua.
Following the confiscation, the school was renamed the "Bismarck Martínez Educational Center," after a Sandinista militant who disappeared and was allegedly killed during the 2018 protests in Jinotepe, according to the regime's narrative. However, these accusations lack independent verification and are seen by many as baseless smears to legitimize the seizure.
The Sisters of St. Joseph congregation, known for their work based on love for one's neighbor and the practice of charity, have not been provided with any evidence supporting the accusations made by Rosario Murillo, co-president of the Nicaraguan government. The congregation has been accused of being responsible for "crimes" during the 2018 protests.
The independent website Despacho 505 condemned the seizure decision, stating it as "another proof that the perversity of the Murillo-Ortega dictatorship knows no bounds." This condemnation follows numerous arrests, expulsions, bans on religious activities, and prohibitions on processions against bishops, priests, and other religious activities in Nicaragua.
The Ortega-Murillo government has been seizing religious order or Catholic Church structures over time in Nicaragua. Two other buildings owned by the Catholic Church in Nicaragua, the San Luis Gonzaga seminary and the spiritual retreat center La Cartuja, were seized by the Ortega-Murillo government in January.
The seizure of San José College, along with the accusations and political context surrounding its history and closure, is controversial both locally and internationally. The US State Department's Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs has condemned the seizure of the San José college in Jinotepe, Nicaragua, by the Nicaraguan government. The community and observers view the seizure as not only an attack on religious freedom but also a rewriting of local civic memory, as the school had long been a symbol of peaceful education and service rather than violence.
- The confiscation of San José College by the Ortega-Murillo government and its subsequent renaming as the "Bismarck Martínez Educational Center" is a contentious issue in the context of war-and-conflicts, politics, and general-news, as it is perceived as an assault on religious freedom and a reinterpretation of local civic history.
- Amidst the broader pattern of government actions aimed at dismantling the Church's institutional presence in Nicaragua and numerous arrests, expulsions, and prohibitions on religious activities, the Sisters of St. Joseph congregation, who run the college, is being accused of involvement in crime-and-justice matters during the 2018 protests; however, no verifiable evidence has been presented to support these allegations.
