{"id":55127,"date":"2025-09-17T03:50:35","date_gmt":"2025-09-17T11:50:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/?p=55127"},"modified":"2025-09-17T03:50:44","modified_gmt":"2025-09-17T11:50:44","slug":"90-of-nicaraguans-feel-spied-upon-true-or-fake-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/2025\/09\/17\/90-of-nicaraguans-feel-spied-upon-true-or-fake-news\/","title":{"rendered":"‘90% of Nicaraguans Feel Spied Upon’ \u2013 True, or Fake News?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The \u201cspied upon\u201d headline from El Pais<\/em> is unequivocal. The story, in the newspaper\u2019s English-language edition<\/a>, says that Nicaraguans live in \u201ca climate of permanent surveillance\u201d in which they distrust even their neighbors. Further, apparently harmless community meetings are really \u201ca mechanism of social control\u201d where they \u201cfeel watched.\u201d El Pais<\/em> sources a survey carried out \u201cindependently\u201d by an organization called Hagamos Democracia<\/em> (\u201cLet\u2019s Make Democracy\u201d), based in Costa Rica. Its president, Jes\u00fas Tefel, says that people can\u2019t \u201cexpress opinions openly for fear of being betrayed.\u201d El Pais\u2019s <\/em>conclusion is that Nicaraguans live under \u201cconstant surveillance and repression.\u201d<\/p>\n

Is this true or is it fake news? To probe this question, let\u2019s first take a look at the author of the article and the main sources used.<\/p>\n

Wilfredo Miranda<\/strong>, the journalist, is a Nicaraguan based in Costa Rica. He\u2019s written 23 articles<\/a> for El Pais<\/em> in the past twelve months, all but two of them negative stories about Nicaragua\u2019s government. This is hardly surprising since his career has been entirely in opposition news outlets, such as Divergentes<\/em>, which he founded, and Confidencial<\/em>. The latter is owned by the wealthy Nicaraguan family of the Chamorros, who received at least $7 million from USAID<\/a> to promote opposition media in the run up to the attempted coup in Nicaragua in 2018. Miranda has also written for the UK Guardian<\/em><\/a> and for the Washington<\/em> Post<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Hagamos Democracia<\/em><\/strong> is a non-governmental organization (NGO), founded in 1995 in Nicaragua, closed by the government in December 2018 and now based in Costa Rica. Its funding sources prior to its closure included USAID<\/a> (US$801,390) and the National Endowment for Democracy<\/a> (US$525,000). In Costa Rica it received<\/a> US $1,114,000 from Washington to work with exiled political activists. Its sparse website<\/a> claims the NGO is independent. It says nothing about its funding sources or how it\u2019s run.<\/p>\n

Jes\u00fas Tefel<\/strong>, a Nicaraguan exiled in Costa Rica, became the organization\u2019s president in 2024. Tefel is a founder of one of Nicaragua\u2019s main opposition political parties and part of an initiative called \u201cMonteverde,\u201d which is attempting to unite these diverse groups.<\/p>\n

Behind Hagamos Democracia<\/em> is Luciano “Chano” Garc\u00eda<\/strong>, alleged to have bought its presidency in 2017<\/a> until he stood down in Tefel\u2019s favor last year. Chano is a long-time opponent of Nicaragua\u2019s Sandinista government and a relative of former dictator Anastasio Somoza. An organizer<\/a> of the coup attempt in 2018, he recruited known violent, criminals, called for the overthrow of the government and campaigned for police officers to desert their posts. When the coup attempt failed, he fled to Costa Rica, allegedly<\/a> with the help of a CIA agent. Chano is accused by Nicaragua\u2019s attorney general of organized crime, terrorism, and conspiracy against the constitutional order.<\/p>\n

Second, let\u2019s look at the survey itself. How was it carried out when the population is supposedly \u201cunder constant surveillance”? How can Hagamos Democracia<\/em> conduct a survey in a different country? We do not know because the survey has not been published, but previous surveys have been<\/a>. Here\u2019s how they work:<\/p>\n