Penal Forum confirmed the release of 55 detainees in post-election protests

• The organization has recorded a total of 1,406 arrests since July 29 | Photo: EFE

The non-governmental organization (NGO) Foro Penal stated on Thursday, August 15, that of the more than 1,400 detainees which has been able to confirm, following the protests against the official result of the presidential elections in which the electoral authorities declared the victory of Nicolás Maduro, only 55 people have been released from prison.

“There have been very few people released. Of the more than 1,400 people detained, we have only added 55 people who have been released,” explained the president of the Penal Forum, Alfredo Romero, after an activity of advising the families of these detainees, together with the NGO Provea.

#15Ag Balance of repression (post-electoral) of arrests verified by the @foropenalwhich occurred from July 29 to August 15, updated at 8:00am:

1,406 arrests
(55 released)

-117 teenagers
-14 indigenous people
-17 people with disabilities
-185 women pic.twitter.com/Y7Ggr0l4uR

— Criminal Forum (@ForoPenal) August 15, 2024

Romero did not specify the ages of those released so far, as, he said, the NGO has counted a total of 118 adolescents, between 13 and 17 years old, among those arrested following the protests.

People with disabilities among those arrested

He also recalled that among those arrested there are people with disabilities, as well as a citizen who is on the autism spectrum.

“There is a deaf person in custody, there are people with disabilities, as well as chronic illnesses of some kind,” he added.

Photo: EFE/ Manuel Diaz

The activist said that most of the arrests occurred in the context of protests against the official result of the presidential elections, but he explained that they are verifying reports of “selective” arrests, in which security officials take people who are inside their homes.

Meanwhile, Leticia Torrealba, mother of a 16-year-old boy who was arrested, explained at the event that her son was arrested on July 29 when he was walking with other friends on the street and they were approached by officers of the Bolivarian National Guard (GNB).

NGO urges transfer of several detainees to health centers

The Human Rights Foundation of Los Llanos (Fundehullan) demanded that the Venezuelan authorities transfer to health centers the people detained during the post-election protests. It detailed that in the states of Barinas, Guárico, Apure and Cojedes there are detainees with different pathologies and special conditions.

“We urge the Venezuelan authorities to urgently transfer people with different pathologies to health centers to receive care immediately,” the foundation said in a post on its X account (formerly Twitter) on August 14.

The NGO said that among the detainees is an adolescent with autism, without specifying the entity in which he is being held. Meanwhile, in Barinas, detainees with diabetic hypoglycemia problems were reported.

He also added that there are people in Apure who are isolated and the State security forces have not allowed them to have communication with their families. For this reason, they demanded that the authorities allow these people to have contact with their relatives and trusted lawyers, as established in Article 49 of the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

“He is 16 years old and this is really distressing. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone, that you have a minor and they have him in that situation. It’s difficult for you, because it’s hard for you to smile and see other people well (…) you really feel very broken,” she said.

According to the Venezuelan government, more than 2,400 people have been arrested in the context of the protests that followed the elections on July 28, in which, according to the Prosecutor’s Office, 25 deaths were recorded.

With information from EFE

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