Funes served as El Salvador’s president from 2009 to 2014 as an FMLN politician.
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Nicaragua said Tuesday it has given political asylum to former El Salvador President Mauricio Funes, who has come under scrutiny back home for a truce with gangs during his administration and is also facing multiple legal cases.
The Nicaraguan authorities made the announcement in an official government publication, the Daily Gazette, saying Mr Funes’ life was in danger. According to the official resolution signed by Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Samuel Santos Lopez, the move aims to fulfill the country’s Constitutional commitment to “ensure asylum for political refugees, protecting those persecuted for fighting for democracy, peace, justice, and human rights”.
The former journalist was El Salvador’s first leftist president since the 1982-92 civil war between the military-led government and the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN).
He is also facing a related investigation into possible political corruption during his time in office. “The asylum only seeks to guarantee protection in the face of persecution”, he wrote on his Twitter account.
Mr Funes’ application for asylum was dated 1 September, coinciding with an order for the release of a list of Mr Funes’ government-funded trips overseas while in office. Investigators argue that he and his family need to justify the origin of more than $700,000 in income. “I have not given up on confronting the judicial process or proving my innocence”, Funes said in a tweet.
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Funes spoke out on August 23 to confirm his presence in Nicaragua, but denied he was seeking asylum in the neighboring country, as claimed the previous day by Salvadoran Attorney General Douglas Melendez.
