- Lawyer Ana Leonor Acosta explained that the inmates do not have access to adequate food, drinking water and medical care | Photo: EFE
Ana Leonor Acosta, director of the Coalition for Human Rights and Democracy, denounced the conditions of confinement of women detained for political reasons at the National Institute for Women’s Guidance (INOF), in the state of Miranda, are deplorable and that those deprived of liberty face violations of their human rights.
“Due to the post-election crisis, the overcrowding in this detention center was greater and, so much so, that they brought new inmates and had to take them to another detention center called Las Crisálidas (Miranda) and in reality the situation is desperate “Acosta explained in an interview for VPItv.
The lawyer reported that the relatives of the political detainees describe the situation as “a horror story.” He alleged that the inmates do not have access to adequate food, drinking water and medicine, which is why he classified this situation as a violation of their human dignity.
Many of them are detained there in a lean manner and are also subjected to cruel treatment,” he stated.
More than 200 detained in the post-electoral context
Activist Ana Leonor Acosta pointed out that according to the information that the coalition has collected, approximately 200 women have been detained in the post-election context. However, he alleges that this figure could be higher due to cases that have not been reported by family members.
Many of them are young, but people inside the detention center told us that there are women of all ages. They also told us that these people were terrified, that they had no type of explanation for what was happening and not all of them have reported it. “Families are very afraid to talk and they are very afraid of what is happening,” he said.
Acosta alleged that the majority of these detainees have been prevented from having private defense, so the families have had to turn to public defense.
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“Many family members went to the public defender’s office to investigate what was happening, they asked them for requirements and told them that since they were not involved in any criminal act, after the 45 days of criminal investigation in the preliminary hearing it was very likely that they would be released. Well, this did not happen, they took the women to trial and this creates another chapter in the violation of the right to defense and due process in Venezuela,” he explained.
About the arrest of the former director of the INOF
The lawyer referred to the recent arrest of the former director of the INOF. Ahiza Guillermina Maestre Betancourt, who was charged by the Public Ministry with the alleged crimes of commission of the crimes of delay or aggravated omission of functions, as well as the illicit introduction of cell phones into penitentiary establishments.
Acosta pointed out that the women detained in the INOF had previously reported that the director of the prison participated in alleged acts of corruption by requesting money from the detainees in exchange for phones and “privileges.”
“We see that the accusations do not have to do with acts of corruption, but rather with failure to perform duties, so this is under investigation, it is a preliminary stage and we will see definitively within 45 days whether they are charged,” he added.
He explained that this is not a situation exclusive to INOF, but that in many prisons these crimes committed by prison authorities are repeated. He indicated that those detained for political reasons go from being victims of the judicial system to being victims of corruption and the prison system.
Detention conditions in the INOF
The activist explained that the detainees in the INOF face a series of irregularities regarding the conditions in which they are held. He warned that one of the most worrying situations has to do with the feeding of the prey.
“In this case, the food in the detention centers is precarious. Some inmates that I have been able to interview have told me that they always have stomach problems, discomfort and diarrhea due to the poor quality of the food and we are talking about poor quality in two senses, in nutritional value, which makes them malnourished, and in health many Sometimes these foods are in bad condition,” he denounced.
He clarified that the inmates who can meet their nutritional requirements. They have achieved it because their relatives send them food. However, he indicated that in order to access these foods they must pay the custodians.
Considers that the situation worsens when the issue of medical assistance to detainees is discussed, since when the inmates’ lawyers ask the courts for orders to transfer them to health centers for check-ups and medical retention, the prison authorities do not comply with those orders. requests.
Directors refuse to transfer people to hospitals and these people see their health deteriorate. It must be noted that the lack of food and the lack of medical care is a form of torture,” he indicated.
The activist reported that recently a transfer of prisoners was carried out from the INOF and La Crisálida to other detention centers in the early morning of October 18. Acosta clarified that the transferred women were common prisoners, because there is no record that women detained for political reasons have been included in that group.
“This was not planned, this transfer occurred at 1:00 am, meaning that there were no family members or anyone supervising such as a prosecutor from the Public Ministry, for example. What the people who were able to see the transfer told us is that the transferred women were allegedly beaten and mistreated,” he warned.
The lawyer highlighted that both communion prisoners and those considered political prisoners face the irregularities of a prison system that does not guarantee human and civil rights.
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