Nicaragua closes US Chamber of Commerce and 150 other organizations
MEXICO CITY (AP) - Nicaragua's government closed another 151 nongovernmental organizations Thursday, among them some of the most important trade organizations, including the American Chamber of Commerce, coming just days after the government shuttered some 1,500 nongovernmental organizations, many of them religious in nature.
The Interior Ministry also cancelled the legal status of the umbrella organization for European countries' chambers of commerce in Nicaragua.
The U.S. chamber, known locally as AMCHAM, had been in existence in Nicaragua for 47 years. It focused on promoting investment and bilateral trade with Nicaragua's most important trade partner. The Associated Press left messages with the chamber seeking comment on the move.
The relationship between the U.S. and Nicaragua has been strained for years, especially since President Daniel Ortega's deadly crackdown on massive street protests in 2018, but commerce continued.