the authorities, exposing them to further reprisals and forms of persecution. In view of the above, international human rights organisations have concluded that the Supreme Court’s rulings of 11 May not only constitute “undue interference in the legal profession in Nicaragua,”94 but are also aimed at creating “an atmosphere of fear and self-censorship among those who defend political opponents or continue to work in Nicaragua.”95 4. Protection of persons who have become stateless 4.1 Individuals outside Nicaragua Almost all of the individuals who have been made stateless by the Ortega-Murillo regime are outside Nicaragua, facing different situations in terms of recognition of their status and the granting of special protection to allow them to access and exercise their human rights.96 In the case of the 222 women released from prison and exiled, the US government granted them a temporary residence permit, on urgent humanitarian grounds, authorising them to stay legally in the country for two years and to apply for a work permit.97 Another group of people were in exile when the regime arbitrarily deprived them of their nationality. Some of them have had their refugee status recognised by the governments of the host countries.98 Others are seeking asylum and are awaiting a final decision on their status.99 In some cases, the applicants do not have a work permit and the decision on their status has been pending for several years.100 In at least two cases, persons arbitrarily deprived of their nationality left the country irregularly, days after the decision condemning them to statelessness. One of them was granted refugee status and another is applying for asylum and is experiencing serious difficulties in accessing the means necessary for their subsistence.101 One group of people left Nicaragua and went into exile due to persecution by the regime, but on their arrival abroad they did not take any steps to apply for refugee status. For this reason, at the time of the arbitrary deprivation of their nationality they were not covered by any international protection regime.102 In response to the arbitrary stripping of nationality carried out by the Ortega-Murillo regime, the governments of Spain,103 Chile, Argentina, Mexico104 and Colombia105 offered to grant stateless persons 94. O  ffice of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Communication to the State of Nicaragua, 13 July 2023, Ref: OL NIC 1/2023, p. 8. 95. I ACHR, “IACHR Rejects Ongoing Repression and Human Rights Violations in Nicaragua”, 16 June 2023, available at: https:// www.oas.org/en/iachr/jsForm/?File=/en/iachr/media_center/preleases/2023/123.asp 96. A  t the international level, there is consensus that stateless persons require recognition of their status, as well as the granting of special protection to enable them to access and exercise their human rights. In this regard, UNHCR has drawn attention to the importance of States establishing a procedure for the determination and granting of a legal status to stateless persons, in accordance with the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons. UNHCR, Statelessness Determination Procedures: Identifying and Protecting Stateless Persons, August 2014, p. 1. 97. U  S Department of State, “222 Nicaraguan Political Prisoners Released, Enter U.S.—Frequently Asked Questions and Resources”, available at: https://www.state.gov/222-nicaraguan-political-prisoners-released-enter-u-s-frequently-asked-questions-andresources/ 98. O  ffice of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Communication to the State of Nicaragua, 18 September 2023, Ref: AL NIC 3/2023, pp. 4-7. 99. Ibid. 100. Ibid. See also, Confidencial, “Stateless Nicaraguans assess ways out of migratory uncertainty”, 28 February 2023, available at: https://confidencial.digital/english/stateless-nicaraguans-assess-ways-out-of-migratory-uncertainty/ 101. O  ffice of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Communication to the State of Nicaragua, 18 September 2023, Ref: AL NIC 3/2023, p. 7. 102. C  onfidencial, “Stateless Nicaraguans assess ways out of migratory uncertainty”, 28 February 2023, available at: https:// confidencial.digital/english/stateless-nicaraguans-assess-ways-out-of-migratory-uncertainty/ 103. E  l País, “España ofrece la nacionalidad a los 222 presos políticos desterrados por Ortega” (Spain offers nationality to 222 political prisoners banished by Ortega), 10 February 2023, available at: https://elpais.com/internacional/2023-02-10/espana-ofrecela-nacionalidad-a-los-222-expresos-politicos-desterrados-por-ortega.html. See also: El País, “España ofrece la nacionalidad a los 94 opositores a los que se la ha quitado Daniel Ortega” (Spain offers nationality to the 94 opponents who have been stripped of it by Daniel Ortega), 17 February 2023, available at: https://elpais.com/internacional/2023-02-17/espana-ofrecela-nacionalidad-a-los-94-opositores-a-los-que-se-la-ha-quitado-daniel-ortega.html 104. B  BC News Mundo, “Argentina, Chile y México ofrecen la ciudadanía a los nicaragüenses opositores a los que despojaron de su nacionalidad” (Argentina, Chile and Mexico offer citizenship to Nicaraguan opponents deprived of their nationality), 22 February 2023, available at: https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-64730172 105. D  W, “Colombia y México ofrecen ciudadanía a apátridas” (Colombia and Mexico offer citizenship to stateless persons), FIDH - Exile and civil death 12