WASHINGTON, D.C.– Congressman Mario Díaz-Balart (FL-26), Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs of the House Committee on Appropriations, issued the following statement after presenting the National Endowment for Democracy's (NED) prestigious Democracy Service Medal to Bishop Silvio Báez for his courageous work in demanding religious freedom in Nicaragua under the repressive dictatorship of the Ortega regime.
"First, I want to recognize and thank the dedicated staff at the National Endowment for Democracy, particularly the president and CEO, Damon Wilson, for their work every day to bring freedom, democracy, and human rights to the most repressed corners of the globe.
"We all know some who have suffered, perhaps lost everything or even lost their lives, in the cause of freedom," said Rep. Díaz-Balart. "These heroes are at the forefront of my mind as I fulfill my role in Congress. I am deeply honored to have presented NED's Democracy Service Medal to Bishop Silvio Báez, who bravely demanded freedom in Nicaragua and suffered severe consequences as a result. Under the oppressive grip of the Ortega regime, even the small space available to clergy, religious schools, charitable organizations, and even the order that Mother Theresa founded, have been stripped of their legal status, while their leaders are imprisoned or forced into exile. Bishop Silvio Báez is one courageous soul, who was ordained bishop in Managua in 2009 and was forced to leave Nicaragua in 2019 because he was receiving death threats. The Ortega regime cannot tolerate faith's ability to supplant its claim to absolute authority. Ortega and his thugs must be held accountable for their reprehensible actions against the Nicaraguan people. The people of Nicaragua will be free, and it will be due to the relentless courage, faith, and work of individuals such as Bishop Báez."
