IranPress/America: When Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega overthrew the country's Somoza dictatorship in 1979, Sergio Ramirez was standing by his side.
Now, the poet and novelist is among Ortega's most vocal critics, saying the thirst for power has changed him.
Ortega responded with a brutal crackdown, allegedly using paramilitary groups to put down protests. He, and his wife and vice president blame the protests on so-called "terrorists" and have refused calls for an early election to defuse the crisis.
Ramirez is critical of Ortega's response, saying the levels of violence are worse than during the Sandinista revolution.
"These are unarmed casualties, people who are being persecuted, hunted by snipers, killed by machine guns, people who are burned to death in their homes, shot in the head in the middle of the street. It's something without precedents in the history of Nicaragua," he says.
According to the Nicaraguan Association for Human Rights, some 448 people have been killed since protests began, many are university students who have been a key force in the demonstrations.
The country - already Central America's poorest - is suffering economic ruin from the crisis and thousands are fleeing to neighbouring Costa Rica to seek asylum.
"Can things ever go back to the way they were before April 18th? Can Ortega rebuild consensus somehow? In a peaceful matter, or based on fear? ... [The] grievances against the same families who were Ortega's supporters make it impossible to rebuild the social fibre that existed before."
"Maybe it's me being naive, but I think that this is the first time this country has the opportunity to resolve a dictatorial conflict through civic means. It's a historical opportunity for Nicaragua".
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