Unlike its neighbors, Nicaragua has a relatively low crime rate. Compared to Honduras, a country that's widely considered the most violent in the world, the homicide rate in Nicaragua is eight times lower: 11.3 murders per 100,000 people rather than 90.4 per 100,000. In the US, the rate is 4.8.
Tens of thousands of unccompanied children from Central America have recently fled across Mexico to the United States, overwhelming the immigration system. But while there were plenty from countries like El Salvador and Guatemala, few Nicaraguan children joined them. Everard Meade, the director of the Trans-Border Institute at the University of San Diego, says the lower rate of violence is a big reason not many made the dangerous journey. “I think a lot of that is just that they’re not facing the kind of social violence,” Meade said. “I think it’s that simple.”
It's also partly because of the region's history. The migrant experience has simply been different for Nicaraguans than for other Central Americans.
[For more of this story, written by Jill Replogle, go to http://www.pri.org/stories/2014-08-06/tens-thousands-central-american-children-are-fleeing-their-homes-except-nicaragua]
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