海角大神

Last week, Nicaraguans ignored a government ban on public protest, gathering in small groups across the country to commemorate a year of deadly upheaval and government repression.

A small group waving blue and white Nicaraguan flags and chanting 鈥淔reedom for political prisoners!鈥� was quickly surrounded by truckloads of police in riot gear. But the demonstrators鈥� presence underscores a dedication to voicing opposition to the government, despite more than a year of sometimes deadly crackdowns and intimidation 鈥� in which protesters are getting more creative.

More than 300 people have been killed and more than 500 protesters imprisoned since April 2018, when students, retirees, and civic groups joined protests to oppose proposals for fiscal reform and the government鈥檚 increasingly authoritarian response. It was a tipping point听in years of increasing repression under the government of听President听Daniel Ortega. In a poll this March, only 22% of Nicaraguans said they would vote for the president, who has resisted calls for fresh elections.

Protesting has become increasingly precarious in Nicaragua, with an estimated 60,000 people seeking refuge abroad, according to the United Nations.听Inside the country, Nicaraguans听face networks of informal neighborhood spies and a dramatically heightened police presence.听And the conflict is at an impasse: While the government recently released听dozens of political prisoners to house听arrest, leaders of the opposition refuse to continue negotiations until all prisoners are released and other rights restored.

Yet Nicaraguans are adapting, both at home and in exile. From flash mob protests to social media campaigns to clandestine street art, citizens are using new tactics to express their opposition and keep abuses in the international spotlight.

And the government's ban on large, organized demonstrations may be creating unintended consequences: More widespread local protests have emerged in recent months, says Maynor Salazar, a journalist with the independent news site Confidencial. Nicaraguans are 鈥渓iberating themselves鈥� from the government鈥檚 ban, he says, through brief, spontaneous actions, like joining small groups of demonstrators, painting neighborhood walls the blue and white of Nicaragua鈥檚 flag, or honking their car horns during mass meetups at rush hour.听

Now, Mr. Salazar says, despite continued risks, Nicaraguans see they can take their flags and make a statement anywhere they go, individually, in order to 鈥渄emand an end to the dictatorship and freedom for political prisoners.鈥�

鈥楾he spark鈥�

It was here, on the manicured lawns amid the stark white buildings of the Jesuit Central American University (UCA) in April 2018, that students first organized in opposition to Mr. Ortega鈥檚 government.听

鈥淯niversity students were the spark of this rebellion and consequently they are the main target for the government,鈥� says Jorge Huete-P茅rez, a biology professor at UCA, in the capital Managua. The crisis has had devastating effects on universities and students across the country, he says, with many college campuses shuttered for nearly a year as students fled abroad or went underground. Police maintain a presence outside UCA鈥檚 campus gates.

But despite intimidation, the school is 鈥渟een as the only place right now in the country where you can speak听your mind,鈥� Professor听Huete-P茅rez听says, due to its status as a private university and the faculty鈥檚 support of the student movement. Lately, students have organized flash mobs they call听piquetes, or 鈥渕osquito bites,鈥� for their quick impact.听On the tree-lined pathways of UCA鈥檚 campus, students masked with Nicaraguan flags regularly gather, chanting, 鈥淭hey weren鈥檛 delinquents, they were students!鈥� and reading imprisoned students鈥櫶齨ames.

It鈥檚 not just students taking risks. Professor Huete-P茅rez helped organize a series of academic seminars to generate ideas on how to build a democratic society in what he calls the 鈥淧ost-Ortega time.鈥� Its first gathering, held in December, drew 100 participants, including student leaders and professors fired from public universities for their activism.听

Efforts in exile

Thousands of miles across the globe, Norma Chavarr铆a and three other Nicaraguans unfurl a banner in a Madrid park that reads, 鈥淔eminists condemn the terrorist, sexist state.鈥� They film their rainy-day declaration on Facebook, working to keep attention on Mr. Ortega鈥檚 actions both at home and abroad.

The internet and mobile apps have played a key role in keeping up activist engagement from afar, Ms. Chavarr铆a says.

鈥淎s long as there are dissident voices, they will continue to refresh our memories and denounce the government from wherever they are,鈥� she says.

Ms. Chavarr铆a worked for years in the city of Matagalpa with feminist groups, who have long accused Mr.听Ortega of failing to address significant rates of domestic and sexual violence. She quickly joined the widespread protests last year, but fled to Spain after receiving threats. Since then, she has joined efforts to educate allies in Europe about the conflict and highlight women鈥檚 leadership in the opposition.

Not all efforts to educate foreigners about Mr. Ortega鈥檚 crackdown are quite so far afield. A collective of Nicaraguan feminists called Las Malcriadas, or 鈥渂adly-behaved women,鈥� is tapping into social media and cross-border projects like a Central American tour. Lucero, a photographer and activist who uses a pseudonym, recently traveled across Costa Rica, trying to raise awareness about the realities back home.

Inside Nicaragua, 鈥渙ur work has been mostly reduced to the digital space,鈥� she says.听Las Malcriadas use social media to draw attention to political prisoners鈥� poor conditions and to call for justice for those killed during protests.

Lucero also uses street art 鈥� and she鈥檚 had to innovate. In December, she broadcast messages with an LED projector on a Managua听street, then documented the images on social media. But there are still risks: Last week, while she photographed an anti-government demonstration, a reporter from state-sponsored media filmed her and other activists, she says, while another reporter threatened them.

The risk for speaking out has only increased in recent months, says Mr. Salazar, the journalist, with police using photo surveillance and informants to keep tabs on demonstrators.

But despite Mr. Ortega鈥檚 firm grip on power,听Lucero says these small acts of resistance do add up.

鈥淲hat鈥檚 important is that we are here, we continue to resist, and we continue with our demands.鈥�