Nicaraguan Government, Opposition To Resume Peace Talks On Thursday - Reports

The Nicaraguan government and representatives from the opposition Civic Alliance agreed to renew peace talks on March 14, local media reported on Thursday, citing a press statement that the two sides jointly released

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th March, 2019) The Nicaraguan government and representatives from the opposition Civic Alliance agreed to renew peace talks on March 14, local media reported on Thursday, citing a press statement that the two sides jointly released.

"The participants of the discussion had an intense exchange of various opinions and the Civic Alliance expressed their readiness to return to the negotiating table," the statement said as quoted by Venezuelan news agency Telesur.

It was also mentioned that sides had negotiated the release of a number of people who were arrested, according to the opposition, on political grounds, scheduled for March 15.

In late February, the Nicaraguan government and opposition agreed to resume long-stalled talks on resolving the country's political crisis.

A week later the two sides agreed on a 16-point road map that set out the negotiation procedures. However, on Sunday, opposition walked out of the talks, calling on President Daniel Ortega to release all political prisoners before talks could resume.

Nicaragua has been in a political crisis since April 2018 when people took to the streets to protest unpopular social security reforms announced by Ortega. Despite the president canceling the reforms a few days later, protests ensued with people redirecting their discontent at Ortega. According to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, 317 people were killed in approximately three months following the protests' outbreak. The Nicaraguan Foreign Ministry maintains that the number is 198.