Manipulating Social Movements: Gendered Ideologies and Authoritarianism in Nicaragua

Abstract

  • Anti-feminist discourses and practices are not exclusive to right-wing authoritarianisms but can also manifest in leftist or self-proclaimed progressive regimes. These practices often serve as foundational pillars for consolidating and maintaining political control.

  • The Ortega-Murillo regime in Nicaragua provides a stark example, employing deeply ingrained gendered ideologies not only to reinforce but also to actively legitimize its political power and suppress opposition.

  • Initial strategies of the regime involved sophisticated elite pact-making, particularly with former political rival Alemán, enabling legal and electoral control. This later evolved into strategic alliances with conservative religious groups, leveraging shared social values to marginalize progressive voices.

  • The regime systematically uses intimidation tactics and a wide array of legal tools, such as the "Foreign Agents" law, to effectively pacify and dismantle critical civil society organizations, particularly those advocating for human rights and women's rights.

  • Feminist ideas and organizations are specifically targeted not merely as dissenting voices but as central perceived threats, making their suppression a key element in the regime's broader strategy of authoritarian control and ideological dominance.

Introduction

  • The widespread celebration for Miss Universe 2023, Sheyniss Palacios, became an unexpected flashpoint that dramatically revealed the deep complexities and tensions within Nicaraguan nationalism under the tight grip of an authoritarian government.

  • In response, Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo's regime swiftly condemned the spontaneous public celebrations, framing them as illegitimate threats to national stability and order. This reaction exemplifies a common tactic used by autocratic regimes: quickly vilifying popular movements or perceived opponents to reassert state control and demonize dissent.

  • The regime’s pervasive patriarchal narrative consistently infantilizes citizens, portraying them as inherently dependent on the state and requiring strict guidance, often through punishment for any perceived disobedience. This reflects a deeply ingrained paternalistic approach where the state views itself as the ultimate authority and guardian over a perpetually immature populace.

  • Political repression has dramatically escalated following the nationwide uprising in 2018, leading to hundreds of perceived dissidents being unjustly imprisoned, and in many cases, arbitrarily stripped of their Nicaraguan citizenship, further consolidating the regime's power by eliminating opposition.

  • Ortega’s regime meticulously crafts and projects an image of itself as a benevolent familial protector, yet simultaneously targets any form of dissent, especially from women’s rights groups, as profoundly harmful to the unity and stability of the state, justifying harsh suppression within a nationalist framework.

Gendered Ideologies and Authoritarianism

  • The Ortega-Murillo regime is a clear manifestation of what can be termed "authoritarian patriarchal populism," where deeply embedded gender ideologies are not just peripheral but fundamental to structuring and legitimizing their political narratives and governance.

  • Ortega strategically positions himself as the ultimate paternal figure, demanding unwavering loyalty and obedience from the populace, thereby further reinforcing the infantilization of citizens and entrenching a hierarchical power dynamic.

  • Women’s rights organizations are consistently demonized and delegitimized, often falsely accused of being foreign agents or disloyal actors undermining national integrity and traditional family values. In stark contrast, the regime actively embraces and forms strong alliances with religious and conservative allies who share their traditionalist and patriarchal views.

  • Despite initial progressive strides for women's rights during the Sandinista Revolution, the Ortega-Murillo regime's increasingly misogynist rhetoric and restrictive policies align distinctly with broader international patterns of patriarchal populism, often seen in both right-wing and certain leftist authoritarian contexts.

Historical Context: From Revolution to Neoliberalism

  • The Sandinista Revolution (1979-1990), while mobilizing widespread citizen participation and achieving significant social reforms, ultimately prioritized class over gender struggles. Women's rights, though acknowledged, were largely treated as secondary or derivative issues, expected to be resolved intrinsically within the broader class struggle.

  • Following the revolution's conclusion, many feminists, disillusioned by the FSLN's patriarchal tendencies and its reluctance to prioritize gender equality, strategically split from the party. They subsequently formed autonomous movements that vigorously promoted gender equality, leading to important legislative gains during the neoliberal period, even amidst significant political and economic challenges.

  • The period after the revolution witnessed a gradual and unsettling erosion of institutional support and public space for women’s movements, especially as the political landscape shifted and conservative forces gained influence, setting the stage for Ortega's return to the presidency and the subsequent dismantling of these advances.

Evolution of Authoritarianism in Nicaragua (2007-2018)

1. Pact-Making

  • Daniel Ortega strategically regained power in 2007 through a highly controversial political pact with his former rival, Arnoldo Alemán, which fundamentally restructured electoral rules to his advantage, facilitating long-term control rather than democratic competition.

  • Key electoral law changes dramatically reduced the percentage of votes required for a presidential win from 45% to just 35% and eliminated the second round, alongside removing term limits. These changes allowed Ortega to systematically exploit manipulated institutions and consolidate an increasingly authoritarian grip on power.

  • This period also included the egregious modification of laws concerning presidential re-election, which originally prohibited consecutive terms, and a troubling weakening of women’s legal rights, particularly concerning the comprehensive protection against domestic violence and femicide, effectively eroding previous legislative gains.

2. Alliances

  • Post-2006 elections, Ortega’s regime forged powerful ideological alliances with conservative religious groups, predominantly evangelical churches and a segment of the Catholic hierarchy. These alliances were strategically cultivated by appealing to shared traditional family values and moralistic narratives, effectively marginalizing feminist organizations and their progressive agendas.

  • Public declarations from Murillo often emphasized support for traditional family values and motherhood, directly contrasting with increasingly aggressive legislative attacks on women’s rights organizations. These groups were frequently subjected to accusations of disloyalty and subversion when they challenged the regime's policies.

3. Threats and Intimidation

  • The regime extensively implemented the Councils of Citizen Power (CPCs) as a pervasive network of control mechanisms across neighborhoods. These councils directly linked access to essential state jobs and social benefits with explicit political loyalty to the FSLN, effectively creating a system of patronage and surveillance.

  • Paramilitary groups, often operating with impunity and state acquiescence, were consistently deployed to intimidate critics, violently disrupting protests and directly targeting feminist organizations and their leaders, who were seen as particularly potent symbols of resistance against the patriarchal state.

  • The regime’s rhetoric consistently and overtly aligned traditional masculinity with effective governance and national strength, while simultaneously framing women’s rights organizations and their proponents as illegitimate, foreign-influenced, and antagonistic forces threatening national sovereignty and moral order.

A Critical Juncture: The 2018 Uprising

  • Rising public dissent coalesced following the highly unpopular proposed reforms to the Nicaraguan Institute of Social Security (INSS), which aimed to increase contributions while reducing benefits. This sparked widespread student and elder-led protests across the nation.

  • The regime responded with an unprecedentedly violent crackdown against peaceful demonstrations, resulting in over 355 documented deaths, thousands of injuries, and a massive wave of political arrests. A particularly egregious event was the Mother's Day Massacre, where police and paramilitary forces brutally killed peaceful demonstrators, including many mothers, highlighting the regime’s complete disregard for human life and its anti-feminist agenda.

  • State violence specifically targeting women in protests, including sexual assault and public humiliation, chillingly illustrates the regime's perverse logic linking traditional maternal roles to a forced obedience to state power, punishing those who dared to defy the patriarchal authority.

Dismantling Civil Society (2018-Present)

  • Following the violent suppression of the 2018 uprising, the regime systematically engaged in broader and more aggressive legal repression designed to completely dismantle civil society. This included the arbitrary closure and confiscation of assets of hundreds of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), independent media outlets, and even private educational institutions.

  • A particularly destructive measure was the introduction of the “Foreign Agents” law in 2020, which imposed onerous registration and reporting requirements on any organization receiving foreign funding. This law was deliberately used to target and force the closure of numerous women’s groups, human rights organizations, environmental advocacy groups, and other critical voices, effectively suffocating independent civil society.

  • Recent legislative measures continue to suppress dissent, notoriously exploiting vague and expansive definitions of “treason,” “money laundering,” and “cybercrimes” to justify arbitrary detentions, politically motivated sentences, and the silencing of any form of opposition under a false guise of maintaining public order and national security.

  • Media repression intensified dramatically, with the closure of major independent newspapers, television stations, and radio outlets, and the arrest or forced exile of journalists. This strategy aimed to eliminate all dissenting voices, replacing independent reporting with a state-controlled narrative of state benevolence that effectively masked the growing brutality of authoritarian governance and its severe human rights violations.

Conclusion

  • The Ortega-Murillo regime serves as a critical and sobering illustration of how governments that emerge from a leftist or revolutionary tradition can, paradoxically, employ patriarchal ideologies and anti-feminist tactics that are strikingly similar to those historically associated with right-wing authoritarian movements.

  • Feminism, by its very nature, presents profound ideological and organizational challenges to regimes fundamentally based on patriarchal authority and traditional gender roles. This inherent challenge invariably leads to the systematic repression of women’s rights movements and organizations, as they are perceived as direct threats to the regime's foundational legitimacy and control.

  • The complex and often contentious relationship between female political agency (women’s ability to act independently and exert power) and state gender ideologies across the entire political spectrum critically underlines the urgent need for consistent and rigorous scrutiny of all forms of political power, especially concerning how they intersect with and manipulate gender norms.

Acknowledgments

  • Appreciation is acknowledged towards editors and reviewers for their constructive feedback on earlier drafts of this work, which significantly contributed to its clarity and depth.

Notes

  1. Recognition of the genuine revolutionary achievements of the Sandinista period, particularly in health and literacy, despite the escalating authoritarianism and internal patriarchal structures that later emerged, and the external opposition it faced.

  2. A detailed historical perspective on the evolution and challenges faced by women's groups, providing context both before and after the Sandinista Revolution, illustrating their autonomy, struggles, and the eventual governmental clampdown.