The attorney general of the International Criminal Court (CPI), Karim Khanreiterated this Monday to the government of the president Nicolas Maduro that the court will open an office in Venezuela to “cooperate” in the investigation of human rights violations.
(Read here: Justice of Venezuela intervenes for the second time the party of opposition leader Henrique Capriles)
“We will continue working, doing what we say we are doing, which is working independently, impartially, without ulterior motives, so that the law, by the grace of God, reigns effectively,” he added.
After this meeting I will be opening an office in Venezuela. It is not a secret office, I do not work illegally or clandestinely.
His visit occurs after on March 1 the ICC rejected Venezuela's appeal regarding the investigation it is carrying out for crimes against humanity during anti-government demonstrations in 2017 that left some 125 dead.
Caracas considers that it is an “unfounded decision”, by arguing that the issue should be resolved in the country's judicial system.
In 2018, the court began a preliminary examination of Venezuela after a complaint of Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Canada on the situation in Venezuela. The examination became a formal investigation in November 2021, after Khan's first official visit to Caracas.
On that occasion, Khan and Maduro agreed on an ICC technical assistance office in Venezuela and signed a memorandum of understanding for Venezuela to adopt “measures” aimed at guaranteeing “the administration of justice.”
The ICC is an intergovernmental organization based in The Hague, Netherlands.
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“I believe there is unity in a central truth: that the dark clouds of suspicion over the allegations will not dissipate without the gentle breeze or winds of credible investigations,” Khan noted.
Venezuela's attorney general, Tarek William Saab, told Khan that the country has made “great progress” in human rights. Since 2017, he assured, 2,795 state security officials have been accused of human rights violations.
Of these, 1,021 agents “are in prison”, 580 have been convicted and another 524 have arrest warrants, Saab detailed.
*With AFP
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