Indigenous Leader Brooklyn Rivera Dies in Nicaraguan Custody Amid Outcry from Human Rights Advocates
Published on May 31, 2026
Brooklyn Rivera, a prominent Indigenous leader and activist, has passed away at the age of 73 while in custody of the Nicaraguan government. His death has sparked significant concern and condemnation from human rights advocates and international observers.
On Sunday, the Nicaraguan government reported that Rivera died due to a bacterial infection following a previous bout of COVID-19. However, this explanation has been met with skepticism from critics who question the circumstances surrounding his prolonged detention and lack of medical oversight.
Reed Brody, a member of the United Nations Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua, expressed doubts about the official narrative. “If he is dead, it cannot be said that the cause was illness,” Brody stated, attributing Rivera’s deteriorating health to the conditions of his confinement. He emphasized that Rivera had been subjected to enforced disappearance for over two years, deprived of independent medical care.
Since September 2023, Rivera had been held in state detention, with no contact with the outside world. His family was barred from visiting him, and for a significant period, the government did not confirm his imprisonment. It was only recently that the Ministry of the Interior acknowledged his detention, releasing photographs of Rivera in a hospital, intubated and in critical condition.
The ministry described his health as “delicate,” citing multiple organ failure, a cirrhotic liver, and an active lung infection. Rivera was reportedly receiving mechanical ventilation and intravenous feeding at the time of his hospitalization. The release of these images incited renewed calls for his release from human rights organizations and international bodies.
The U.S. government has demanded Rivera’s “unconditional release,” attributing responsibility for his treatment to the Nicaraguan leadership. The U.S. State Department condemned the situation, stating, “This repression, violence, and inhumanity is abhorrent; we reiterate our call for his and all political prisoners’ unconditional release NOW.”
Nicaragua’s government, led by co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, has long faced accusations of authoritarianism and human rights violations. Under their rule, dissenters have experienced arrests, imprisonment, and even torture. Rivera was a vocal critic of Ortega’s left-wing Sandinista government and a key figure in advocating for the rights of the Miskito Indigenous group.
Throughout his career, Rivera fought for the protection of his people’s ancestral lands along Nicaragua’s northeastern coast, an area under threat from government and corporate interests seeking to exploit its natural resources. His activism dates back to the first Sandinista government from 1979 to 1990, during which he led the Misurasata armed group and later co-founded the Yamata political party, which played a role in securing limited autonomy for Indigenous peoples.
In recent years, Rivera continued to voice his opposition to the government. In April 2023, he attended a UN forum in Geneva, where he delivered remarks critical of the Nicaraguan administration. Following his speech, he was barred from returning to Nicaragua, prompting him to return covertly before his eventual arrest in September 2023. The government charged him with terrorism, a move critics viewed as an attempt to silence him.
Brody noted the alarming lack of information regarding Rivera’s condition during his detention, stating, “Nobody heard from him since then. The government never gave any indication. He was a disappeared person.”
Rivera’s death marks a significant moment in the ongoing struggle for Indigenous rights and political freedom in Nicaragua, raising critical questions about the treatment of political prisoners and the state of human rights in the country.
