The Nicaraguan National Assembly on Friday unanimously approved  constitutional reforms proposed by President Daniel Ortega. These reforms change the national charter by creating the position of “co-president” and increasing the president’s term, among other things.

The reforms will see the the president and the  president’s spouse become co-presidents. The presidential term will be extended to six years from the existing five. The duo will also exercise greater control over legislative, judicial and electoral bodies. The co-presidents will be able to appoint vice presidents without them being elected by popular vote.

Other reforms include establishing a “volunteer police” force as a support body for the National Police, creation of a right to free and quality education at all levels under Article 58, and the right to free and quality health care under Article 59. Additionally, the flag of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN), the Ortega party, will be made official as a national symbol along with the Nicaraguan flag, the national anthem, and the national shield. The reforms also seek to ensure that the nation’s media are not subjected to foreign interests. After the approval by the first legislature, the reforms are set for final approval in the second legislature on January 10, 2025.

The president of the National Assembly, Dr. Gustavo Porras, has hailed the constitutional reforms as a pathway to strengthen government institutions. He has stressed the need to unite in the common goal of defeating poverty and maintaining peace, which he said will be achieved by approving these constitutional reforms.

The reform initiative is opposed by the opposition, which sees it as a move by Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo, who is also the vice president, to consolidate power and establish a totalitarian rule through the elimination of separation of powers.

The reforms have also attracted criticism from various international bodies, including UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, who has urged Nicaraguan lawmakers to reject the proposed reforms, citing threats to the rule of law amid the country’s ongoing human rights crisis. The secretary general of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro, also issued a statement, calling the reforms “illegitimate” and a “definitive attack on the Democratic Rule of Law.”