During Radio San Carlos’ last broadcast, transmitted on August 15, there was a prayer to the Divine Mercy led by a nun who was at the station in southeastern Managua. Hours later, however, the Nicaraguan Institute of Telecommunications and Postal Services (Telcor) cancelled the radio station’s license along with two other media outlets: Radio La Guarachera and Radio Sky, both located in the west of the country.

The last two stations belonged to the family of businessman Anibal Toruño, owner of Radio Darío, which was also recently shut down.

According to Toruño, the measure of the telecommunications regulator, headed by Nahima Díaz, is part of an “onslaught and genocide” against freedom of expression in Nicaragua “by a monstrous insanity” of the Daniel Ortega-Rosario Murillo regime.

Radio San Carlos had been on the air for 23 years, according to its owner, Silvio Javier Pilarte Centeno, who thanked “the population for opening the doors of their homes to tune in.”

Telcor alleged that Radio San Carlos was transmitting with a power that did not correspond to the authorized one, and that it “substantially” modified the facilities in which it must operate. Such allegation has been the same with which 14 other media outlets have been closed in the first 15 days of August.

“Unfortunately, after 23 years of being on the air Radio San Carlos 94.9 FM ceased to transmit […],” wrote its owner.

Between August 1-2, 10 radio stations of the Diocese of Matagalpa, managed by Bishop Rolando José Álvarez, a critic of the Ortega regime, were shut down.

Also closed were Radio Vos and local channel RB3 “El Canal de la Zona Láctea”, and channel NGTV3, while on August 12 Radio Darío was shut down in a decision its director Anibal Toruño described as “political.”

These are the media outlets that were shut down in August:

Radio Hermanos
Radio Santa Lucía of Ciudad Darío
Radio Católica of Sébaco
Radio Nuestra Señora de Lourdes, of La Dalia
Radio Nuestra Señora de Fátima of Rancho Grande
Radio San José de Matiguás
Radio Monte Carmelo, of Rio Blanco
Radio Alliens, of San Dionisio
Radio Vos
Channel RB3
NGTV3 Channel
Radio Darío
Radio La Guarachera
Radio Sky
Radio San Carlos