“They mistreated my family to make me suffer. My wife was constantly sexually abused under the threat that if I didn’t tolerate it, they wouldn’t let her see me,” says a political activist arrested and tortured by agents of the Nicolás Maduro regime in Venezuela. This is one of several other reports that demonstrate how the Venezuelan dictatorship has been perversely instrumentalizing torture procedures against political opponents in the country. “They forced our children to testify how they took the clothes of their mother and grandmother and they also wanted to take the clothes of my children”, he added, anonymously, to the report of the Section of Participation and Reparation of Victims (VPRS), of the Court International Criminal Law (ICC).
In addition to the report released by the ICC in April, the Venezuelan Program for Education-Action on Human Rights (Provea), revealed its new annual report last Wednesday (10), in which it points out that cases of torture such as the one reported above continue being a reality in the regime of the dictator Nicolás Maduro. The information also highlights the persistence of systematic abuses against human rights, with the use of cruel and inhumane methods to repress dissidents and silence political opposition.
Based on data collected from January to December 2022, the Provea report highlights that several cases of torture were recorded across the country, identifying a total of 91 affected victims and two deaths resulting from the procedures. However, due to official data opacity and fear of reprisals from civil society members by the regime, these numbers are likely to be underreported, indicating that there may be an even greater scale of violations. In all, between 2013 and 2022, around 1,599 victims of torture by agents of the Venezuelan regime have already been identified.
The state’s pattern of repressive violence primarily targets trade union leaders, grassroots workers, journalists, social activists, peasants and political leaders. However, workers have been the most affected by these practices, suffering threats, harassment and torture.
shocks in the genitalia
Another survivor courageously shared the horrors he experienced at the hands of the regime. “My hands were handcuffed to the chair with two pairs of handcuffs. They took an electric prod and plugged it into a wall socket,” he said. “Repeatedly, it was applied to my chest, while water was poured onto my pants, directly onto my genitals. My testicles were electrocuted, causing me to lose control of my bladder and urinate heavily from shock. The scars from the burns remain on my body,” the victim reported, also anonymously, to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In addition to electric shocks and rape, during the period analyzed by the Provea report, victims also reported other brutal methods of torture, including death threats, beatings, insults and even threats of crucifixion. According to the report, these inhumane acts are carried out by State agents, mainly by the Scientific, Penal and Criminal Investigation Corps (CICPC), which was identified as responsible for 71.4% of the registered cases.
“The majority of these people are victims of inhuman and degrading treatment within our prisons. The conditions of confinement, not only for political prisoners, but for all prisoners in this country, generate this massive pattern of human rights violations”, highlighted the research coordinator of Provea, Lissette González, during the presentation of the report.
The report also highlights the recurrent widespread impunity that prevails in the Venezuelan justice system. Since 2017, only 358 State officials have been sentenced for human rights violations, which turns out to be an insignificant number if we consider that more than 17,943 victims were registered in that period.
Also according to the information disclosed, there were 51 complaints of violations of the right to personal integrity made directly to Provea, which, complementing the complaints collected in other media, such as those made in the independent media and other local bodies for the defense of human rights, add up to a total of 2,203 victims, from January to December 2022. Compared to the previous period (2021), in which a total of 1,306 victims were reported, this number represents an increase of 68.6%. Combining the data, between 2013 and 2022, according to Provea, a total of 40,351 victims of violence to personal integrity have already been registered.
“Provea has been carrying out, together with other human rights organizations, the hard task of documenting these cases. In addition, we send this information to international bodies because the national justice system does not make the necessary efforts to produce research materials on this issue of human rights violations. In fact, there is practically no investigation”, says Lissette, in an interview with People’s Gazette.
“Several other international organizations have already contributed to us, whether by sending documented cases to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, or by sending reports to the UN Independent Fact-Determining Mission for Venezuela,” says the research coordinator.
international pressure
In the face of reported abuses, human rights organizations have intensified pressure on the Maduro regime. Last Monday (08), the International Criminal Court (ICC) denied a request by the Venezuelan regime to have access to statements made by victims in the report that denounces human rights violations in the country. The report was produced through an investigation initiated by ICC prosecutors.
Maduro had also called for an end to the body’s investigations, claiming the existence of genuine internal procedures. However, the lack of concrete evidence of effective actions by the State to investigate and prosecute those responsible casts doubt on the seriousness of these efforts. According to the ICC decision, also allowing Maduro access to the statements of victims of the regime would put their security in check, since there would be confidential information there that could lead to further persecution by the dictatorship.
“As we have already seen at the recent meeting in Bogotá (held by the Colombian government to facilitate talks between the Venezuelan regime and the opposition), the government publicly expressed its fears about the progress of investigations by the criminal court and even asked, without any foundation, that political actors to decide in a process over which they have no competence, which is the process of halting investigations”, says the Coordinator of Provea, Rafael Uzcátegui, in the presentation.
In 2021, Venezuela became the first country in Latin America to face an open investigation at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged crimes against humanity. In a regime where local justice is controlled by the Venezuelan dictatorship, international justice and human rights bodies have become one of the few available channels through which the various denunciations of violations and torture that occur within the country can be forwarded.
“The only protection that Venezuelans have against the abuse of power and authoritarianism is the action of international mechanisms for the protection of human rights,” said Uzcátegui.
Despite the assertion of the coordinator of Provea, the lack of impunity in Venezuela is still a sad reality to be lived daily. Even though he is a signatory to the Rome agreement, if there is an eventual advance in the investigations and a conviction by the International Criminal Court, it is unlikely that Nicolás Maduro will be subjected to any sentence being served while inside the country or even be removed from his position, a since the Venezuelan dictator has control over the National Assembly and the military in his hands, which creates obstacles to the effective application of justice or to the confirmation of an international sentence.
The persistence of torture in Venezuela highlights an official narrative that seeks to repress any form of dissent, restricting freedom of expression and threatening those who dare to question the regime. Torture cases are not only human rights violations, but can also be considered crimes against humanity, according to the Independent Fact-Determining Mission for Venezuela, created by the United Nations Human Rights Council.
international research
Last April, thousands of victims of the Venezuelan regime presented their opinions and concerns during the request of the International Criminal Court inspector to resume the investigation into the situation in the country. The Victim Engagement and Reparations Section of the ICC received approximately 8,900 victims, 630 families and 2 independent organizations, who reported their experiences through forms, videos and written documents.
Victims included relatives, human rights defenders, students, journalists and humanitarian workers who were affected by a variety of crimes such as arbitrary detention, torture, sexual violence, enforced disappearances, and political persecution.
They further expressed the urgent need for an impartial investigation conducted by the International Court, arguing that the internal procedures carried out by the Maduro regime are not genuine and that the judicial reforms adopted in Venezuela are limited. They believe that the ICC should hold the main perpetrators of crimes accountable, as they are protected from criminal liability in the country. The ICC investigation is seen by whistleblowers as a unique opportunity for victims’ voices to be heard, the truth about abuses to be revealed, impunity to be tackled and future crimes to be prevented.
In addition to the specific crimes mentioned in the ICC prosecutor’s request, victims narrated numerous cases of killings and forced displacement. Killings include those committed during anti-government demonstrations, extrajudicial executions, and deaths that occur in detention, often due to excessive torture, poor prison conditions, or denial of adequate medical treatment.
Forced displacement cases involve victims who have had to leave Venezuela due to the humanitarian crisis and political persecution, facing loss of employment and economic stability, as well as eviction from their homes, denial of access to medical services and social benefits.
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