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🇻🇪 Venezuela /Conflict & Security

Venezuela Grants Alternative Measures to 51 Detainees Amid Amnesty Process Concerns

From El Nacional · (3d ago) Spanish Mixed tone

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • Venezuela's government announced that 51 detainees have been granted alternative measures by courts, following requests from the Program for Coexistence and Peace.
  • Those affected were processed or convicted for offenses related to "attacks against democratic institutions."
  • The move is framed by the government as part of a policy to promote social understanding and reduce tensions, though civil society groups report continued harassment and slow progress on amnesty processes.

The Venezuelan government, through its Ministry of Communication and Information, has announced a significant development: 51 individuals deprived of liberty have been granted "alternative measures." These decisions, reportedly made by competent courts last week, stem from requests initiated by the Program for Coexistence and Peace, a government initiative. The individuals in question were facing charges or had already been convicted for acts deemed "attacks against democratic institutions."

alternative measures

— Ministry of Communication and InformationDescribing the judicial decisions granted to 51 detainees.

This announcement comes at a critical juncture, as various sectors of Venezuelan society have been questioning the pace of the amnesty process initiated in February. Civil society organizations and political actors have voiced concerns about a perceived slowdown in recent weeks. The government, however, frames these alternative measures as part of a broader policy aimed at fostering social understanding and de-escalating tensions within the country. They assert that such actions will continue to be adopted to encourage national reconciliation and strengthen the social fabric.

attacks against democratic institutions

— Ministry of Communication and InformationCharacterizing the offenses for which the detainees were processed or convicted.

While the government presents this as a positive step, the reality on the ground, as reported by organizations like Foro Penal, indicates that at least 477 people remain detained for political reasons. Furthermore, there are ongoing reports of harassment. Vente Venezuela reported surveillance near their leader's residence, and the National Union of Press Workers highlighted the lack of response to a request to annul a case against journalist Carlos Julio Rojas. The party Primero Justicia also reported the detention and subsequent release under precautionary measures of one of its leaders. These parallel events underscore the complex and often contradictory dynamics surrounding political detentions and freedoms in Venezuela, a situation that continues to be closely monitored both domestically and internationally.

Such measures were agreed upon by the competent courts and executed on the same date.

— Ministry of Communication and InformationConfirming the judicial approval and execution of the alternative measures.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Nacional in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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