Numerous human rights organizations released statements Monday decrying the death of Indigenous leader, politician and activist Brooklyn Rivera after years in Nicaraguan state custody. The most prominent statements come from Amnesty International and the UN Group of Human Rights Experts.

Ana Piquer, Americas director at Amnesty International, emphasized the many concerns raised leading up to the “grave event”:

Brooklyn Rivera should not have died in the custody of the Nicaraguan state. His death followed the deterioration of his health while he was being arbitrarily detained. During this time, the authorities held him without confirming his whereabouts, without access to his family or to trusted legal counsel, and without independent oversight to verify his situation. Amnesty International repeatedly warned that these circumstances placed his personal integrity and life at risk. Today, those warnings have materialized into a death that the state must explain.

On Sunday, Nicaragua’s government attributed Rivera’s cause of death to a bacterial infection.

Last week the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) called for Rivera’s immediate release and urgent medical attention. WOLA raised concerns over his condition following the release of a statement and photographs by the Nicaraguan government on May 27 to provide proof of life, as requested by UN experts.

Jan-Michael Simon, chair of the UN Group, outlined the government’s legal obligations moving forward, stating:

Under international law, Nicaragua must conduct an independent investigation into Brooklyn Rivera’s death in custody, ensure a transparent forensic autopsy, return his remains to the family without delay, and guarantee accountability for his enforced disappearance and related violations.

Similarly, Piquer stressed the “right to truth,” contending that Nicaraguan authorities are obligated to provide “immediate and unrestricted access” to all information on his detention and death.

Rivera was arrested in September 2023 when he returned to Nicaragua after being banned from the country for his remarks at a UN forum on Indigenous peoples in April of the same year. He lived in hiding until he was charged with alleged terrorism. According to Reed Brody, human rights lawyer and member of the UN panel, “Nobody heard from him since then.”

Rivera was a renowned leader of the Miskito Indigenous people. Beginning in the 1980s, Rivera fought the ruling Sandinista government, helping to establish an autonomous region for the Miskito. After returning from exile in Costa Rica, he played a central role in the winning pledges of regional autonomy in peace negotiations. In late 1980s, he founded the Indigenous political party YATAMA. A detailed history has been published by the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs.

“Brooklyn Rivera spent 40 years fighting for his people, and hopefully the international community will finally pay attention,” Brody said.

Rights groups are also calling for attention to those who remain imprisoned for “political reasons.” The UN Group has documented serious human rights violations against other members of YATAMA, and a total of 124 arbitrary detentions of Indigenous leaders between 2018 and 2024. There are nine other detained persons whose whereabouts are currently unknown. Similar concerns about political prisoners have been raised by a the local Nicaraguan Human Rights Collective “Nunca Más.”