The organization Provea, one of the oldest NGOs in Venezuela, has been accompanying victims of human rights violations for more than 30 years and denouncing the abuses of power in that country.
In the absence of official statistics, this NGO has become key to the humanitarian crisis that Venezuelans are experiencing, publishing reports on the x-ray of rights in areas such as health, life, freedom, labor rights, etc.
All this information is collected and taken to international bodies to show what is happening inside Venezuela.
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Regarding the current situation in terms of human rights, the investigation carried out by the ICC and where the country is going in terms of justice for victims, EL TIEMPO spoke with Lissette González, coordinator of Monitoring, Investigation and Dissemination of Provea, who She was in Colombia invited by the Pares Foundation and Civil Rights Defenders.
“We see that it is difficult for there to be justice. It does not seem that there is a genuine will of the government of Nicolás Maduro in that sense, “González told this newspaper about the memorandum of understanding between Venezuela and that Court.
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-What do you think of the ICC investigation in Venezuela?
I believe that the strategy of the Prosecutor (Karim Khan) with the Venezuelan case is to prevent what happens with other trials from happening: that the State leaves the Rome statute and then it can no longer be tried. From the human rights organizations we see that in this memorandum of understanding there may be opportunities for the Venezuelan judiciary to be re-institutionalized in order to comply with the standards requested by the Criminal Court so that these crimes are tried in Venezuela.
However, the recent appointment in the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) that was made by designating people who could not be appointed by the Constitution and linked to the ruling party, does not give much hope.
Last November one saw that, if the State complied with the agreement (which was signed in November 2021), and the judiciary is re-institutionalized and those responsible are judged, that is good. The solution for there to be justice is not necessarily a trial in The Hague. The important thing is that it be in Venezuela. However, before there was more hope than now with the appointment of this new TSJ.
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-What comes then for Venezuela and its examination with the ICC to clarify the cases of extrajudicial executions, torture and abuse of power by state organs?
We see that it is difficult for there to be justice. That is why the work of human rights organizations is important to continue trying to demand justice. It does not seem that there is a genuine will of the government of Nicolás Maduro in this sense. There have been convictions in the case of violence in the 2017 protests, but the chain of command has not gone to trial. We believe that it is difficult for there to be investigations to determine the chain of command that led to these arrests, torture and deaths in Venezuela.
It is difficult for there to be investigations to determine what was the chain of command that led to these arrests, torture and deaths
-How is the panorama of detention of activists, political prisoners and executions today?
We have noticed that the CPI’s announcement to launch an investigation has had an impact on the behavior of the security forces, because in the last year the number of extrajudicial executions and arrests in demonstrations has decreased. It is seen that this threat that there may be international justice has had an effect in reducing some of these practices, although it does not seem that there is a genuine will that is more respectful of human rights. Above all, because the complaints of torture did increase.
-How difficult is it to do the work of Provea in Venezuela, where Chavismo stigmatizes humanitarian organizations?
The main challenge is to continue working despite the threats and harassment that Provea has received. This organization has had a notable public role, because in addition to the research work, a great effort has been made to disseminate it, and what Provea publishes usually has a lot of repercussion. That’s what makes us the government’s favorite target for threats. We have not changed our line: we continue documenting, denouncing and the great challenge is the security of the people who send their information to Provea.
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-What is the aspect that most concerns the organization in terms of human rights in Venezuela?
What has the most repercussion in the press is what has to do with civil and political rights. That is, an arrest, a complaint of torture, etc. But, I would say that the most serious situation is in terms of social rights, because the country’s social situation has been steadily deteriorating since 2014. It is a systemic case, because since there is no water and no electricity, the hospitals do not work. It is a very harsh situation that affects millions of Venezuelans, it is less visible, less newsworthy, but it is the most serious.
On the food issue, Caritas Venezuela is already documenting that 34% of the children they serve are stunted due to chronic malnutrition. That is thousands of Venezuelan children who are going to carry this disability. These long-term deficiencies are going to generate long-term effects in the country.
-And in educational matters?
In terms of education, there was a survey by the School of Education of the Catholic University, and they did a survey in schools and found that it is likely that more than 800,000 children have dropped out of basic education (during the pandemic).
There was also a survey of youth, between 15 and 24 years old, and 1,500,000 people between those ages dropped out of school. The school situation is dramatic.
All this is showing a panorama that the social situation in the future is very compromised. If there are malnourished children with school deficiencies, what chances will they have of overcoming themselves in the future and overcoming the condition of poverty? There has been no government policy to try to level children while schools have been closed.
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-Recently, the country came out of hyperinflation and these macroeconomic data show “signs” of improvement. Are they real sensations or are they just indicators?
Inflation is certainly coming down. This is how the Government and the opposition institutes calculate it. They both have that result. The economy grows. Is that development? Does that mean that Venezuela is fixing itself? That is not necessarily a recovery of the country’s economy.
What has happened in recent years is an economic adjustment, the most drastic of the neoliberal adjustments that Latin America has experienced. This decrease in inflation has been achieved because there is less public deficit. How did it end? Because there is less spending: civil servants are not paid, we do not invest in schools, in hospitals, we invest as little as possible in social policies.
There is a stabilization of the economy, but that stability is benefiting only a very small percentage of the population that is paid in dollars and those that receive remittances. The majority of Venezuelans who earn in bolivars cannot afford all these products, which are at very high prices.
CARLOS JOSE REYES GARCIA
INTERNATIONAL WRITING
TIME
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