Berta Valle is a recognised Nicaraguan activist, journalist, and human rights defender.
With fifteen years of experience as a senior television anchor and station manager working with top morning shows in Nicaragua, Valle is one of the most-recognized broadcasters in the country. In 2016, she was nominated as an independent to represent Managua in the National Assembly by the Independent Liberal Party as part of its National Coalition for Democracy. However, Nicaragua’s Supreme Court, controlled by Ortega loyalists, disqualified the party’s electoral coalition and Valle was blocked from running.
Since 2018, Valle, her daughter and mother-in-law have been living in exile due to the political persecution faced by her husband Félix Maradiaga and his family. Maradiaga was forcibly disappeared by the regime in June 2021 after announcing his intention to run against Daniel Ortega in November’s presidential elections. On February 10, 2023, Maradiaga was released from prison after 611 says and expelled to the United States, where he reunited with Berta and their daughter.
As a consequence of her work, the Nicaraguan National Police and Public Ministry have found Valle guilty of being a “traitor to the homeland.” The only evidence presented was so-called “investigations” into her advocacy on behalf of her husband.
