- The NGO urged the Venezuelan authorities to respect due process | Photo: EFE
The non-governmental organization (NGO) Fundehullan denounced that one of the teenagers detained in Guárico in the context of the post-election protests was brought to trial “without evidence and without access to legitimate defense.”
The event occurred on October 9, according to a publication by the NGO on the social network X. Given this action, the organization urged the authorities to respect and guarantee due process.
“This hearing occurs two months and 10 days after the arrest, violating all the procedural lapses established in the Organic Law for the Protection of Children and Adolescents (Lopnna),” Fundehullan wrote.
Teenagers detained after post-election protests
According to the latest report from the Penal Forum, there are at least 1,916 political prisoners in Venezuela. Of that total, 70 are teenagers.
The young people are detained in different detention centers in the country, where, in some cases, relatives have reported that those affected have been “tortured.”
Other complaints regarding adolescents detained in Venezuela
On October 3, relatives of eight teenagers detained in the post-election context reported that during the night of that day his children were “tortured” in the Caraballeda Preventive Detention Center for Adolescents and Women, in La Guaira.
The information was disseminated by the Venezuelan Prisons Observatory (OVP), which published an audio on its social networks in which screams can be heard from several people who were at the scene.
“Heartbreaking screams from mothers and children were heard at the Caraballeda Preventive Detention Center for Adolescents and Women, in La Guaira, where eight adolescents accused of terrorism remain,” the NGO wrote in X.
That same day, the NGO Justice, Encounter and Forgiveness (JEP Venezuela) reported that seven teenagers detained in the post-election protests were accused of the crimes of terrorism and incitement to hate. Furthermore, they would be judged without the possibility of obtaining any procedural benefit.
The group of minors was presented at a preliminary hearing in the state of Carabobo, where they were ordered to go to trial.
“They were forcing them to admit the facts. “All of these young people very gallantly refused, despite all the terrible situation they have experienced, to admit the facts, which is why yesterday, in a preliminary hearing, they were ordered to go to trial without any type of procedural benefit,” said the general coordinator. from JEP, Martha Tineo, to the EFE news agency.
On September 27, JEP Venezuela warned that the teenagers detained in Valencia, Carabobo state, days after the July 28 elections, were being pressured to admit acts that “they have not committed.”
“We warn that any statement obtained under duress is void of any nullity. It is important to remember that these young people have not had access to trusted defenders to represent them in judicial processes that have clearly violated due process,” the NGO wrote in X.
The OAS condemned the “kidnapping and torture” of minors in Venezuela
Luis Almagro, secretary general of the Organization of American States (OAS), shared a statement from the organization on October 10 in They condemn reports of “kidnapping and torture” of minors in detention centers in Venezuela.
The official described these events as “crimes against humanity” that must be punished.
In the text, the OAS points out the existence of “chilling” audio recordings recorded inside prisons where “minors are tortured with electric shocks, blows, lack of food or even victims of sexual abuse.”
The organization also rejected the fact that minors are accused of crimes such as terrorism and treason, an action it described as “irrational.”
“As an international community, we must ensure that they do not go unpunished and, to this end, we will continue to adopt measures at the international level to ensure that they are effectively brought to justice,” concludes the text published by Almagro on his account. of X.
Adolescent releases
Between August 29 and September 1, a total of 86 adolescents between 14 and 17 years of age were released according to reports from different NGOs that have followed up on these cases.
This is the distribution of released adolescents according to the Penal Forum:
Altos Mirandinos: 8 men and 1 woman.
Caracas: 12 men and 4 women.
Amazonas: 1 man.
Anzoategui: 6 men.
Bolívar: 3 men.
Carabobo: 4 men.
Cojedes: 2 men.
Lara: 6 men and 2 women.
Merida: 6 men and 2 women.
New Sparta: 2 men and 2 women.
Portuguese: 5 men.
Tachira: 12 men and 1 woman.
Yaracuy: 1 man.
Zulia: 6 men.
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