Sucre: Another inmate dies, bringing total prison deaths since April to 21

The Venezuelan Prison Observatory (OVP) reported the death of another inmate, Víctor Alfonso Rivero, at the Hombre Nuevo de Carúpano detention center in Sucre state. This brings the total number of prisoner deaths in custody since April to 21, highlighting a persistent crisis within Venezuela's penal system.

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Beyond the number, these events raise a question that Venezuelan authorities continue to not answer: how many more deaths must occur for the humanitarian emergency that exists within prisons and police lock-ups to be recognized?

The OVP expressed grave concern over the escalating death toll, questioning when Venezuelan authorities will acknowledge the humanitarian emergency within prisons and police lock-ups. The organization stressed that the state holds absolute control over detained individuals and therefore bears a special responsibility to protect their lives, physical integrity, and health.

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This means that it is not enough to keep them locked up because there is an obligation to protect their lives, their physical integrity, and their health.

Despite repeated recommendations from international bodies like the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Inter-American Court, and the United Nations, the OVP stated that Venezuela continues to ignore these calls for improved conditions. Families often find themselves compelled to provide essential medical supplies, food, and even manage hospital transfers to save their loved ones, functions that should fall under government responsibility.

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Each new death demonstrates that international recommendations continue to be ignored and that the protection of life within detention centers remains a pending debt.

The observatory warned that the accumulation of deaths should not be viewed as isolated incidents but as a systemic issue demanding urgent action from national authorities and continuous monitoring by international human rights mechanisms. The OVP concluded that while the death penalty is prohibited in Venezuela, the ongoing neglect and indifference within the prison system are producing a similar fatal outcome.

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The death penalty is prohibited in Venezuela, but abandonment, indifference, and neglect continue to produce the same result.