They broadcast in Nicaragua audiovisual material in which Monsignor Rolando Alvarez appears.

(CNN Spanish) — Pro-government media such as El 19 Digital and Canal 4 Nicaragua, controlled by the government of Daniel Ortega, published photos and video this Saturday of Bishop Monsignor Rolando Álvarez in prison in Matagalpa and two people they identified as their siblings.

In the pictures, the dean can be seen in a blue prisoner’s uniform – eating, talking and sometimes laughing with the duo. Later, he is interviewed by someone off-camera.

When asked about his condition, Monsignor Alvarez said: “With great inner strength, with much peace in the Lord and the Blessed Virgin.” The bishop of Matagalpa assures in the interview that those with whom he conversed were part of his brethren.

Next, his interrogator asks:

– Can you ensure that you receive the dignified treatment every human being deserves?

– Yes, yes, yes. Thank God and I thank the competent authorities, and the people in the prison system – the bishop underlined.

“Today is an angel’s announcement to Mother (…) because my brothers were able to come to see me. Mother always protects us and covers us all,” Monsignor Alvarez added in the last part. of the interview.

According to the publication of El 19 Digital, the meeting between the Nicaraguan cleric and his relatives took place this Saturday afternoon at the “Jorge Navarro” National Penitentiary System in the municipality of Tibitaba.

CNN could not independently verify the location and date the footage was recorded and the photos taken.

In the previous days, organizations such as the Nicaraguan human rights collective Never + and leaders of the Catholic Church in exile appeared in the media and on digital platforms, demanding proof of Monsignor Alvarez’s life from the Ortega government.

They also demanded the release of the bishop and other priests in prison.

CNN reached out to Catholic Church officials in Nicaragua on Sunday for reaction to the government’s disclosures, but has yet to receive a response.

Silvio José Baez, vice-bishop of the Archdiocese of Managua, wrote on Twitter: “I was very happy to see the photos of my brother Monsignor Rolando. I thank God that he is alive! The scenes of the dictatorship were disgusting and cynical. His crime was not erased. The power of people’s prayers and international pressure was revealed. Release now!”

Last February, the Nicaraguan justice system sentenced Monsignor Rolando José Alvarez to more than 26 years in prison for crimes such as undermining the republic and Nicaraguan society and for spreading false news. Lacking a defense, the bishop did not defend himself against the charges.

The Matakalpa bishop has been detained since last August. President Daniel Ortega told a national network that Alvarez had refused to board a plane with 222 prisoners being deported from Nicaragua to the United States, whose government later announced it would grant them humanitarian access.