General coordinator of Provea is summoned to testify before the Cicpc

The Scientific, Criminal and Criminalistic Investigations Corps summoned Óscar Murillo, current general coordinator of the Venezuelan Human Rights Education-Action Program (Provea)due to an investigation carried out by the Cicpc of San Cristóbal, Táchira state, for the alleged “commission of a crime contemplated in the Law Against Hate.”

«This situation occurs in the midst of a dizzying escalation of abuses recorded after the elections of July 28 and new acts of harassment and threats led by the Minister of Interior Relations, Justice and Peace, Diosdado Cabello, against people and organizations that requested an impartial investigation on the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Edwin Santos in the state of Apure«Provea stated in a press release.

The NGO assured that the summons It lacks formal elements that compromise its validity in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution National and current legislation in the country. Furthermore, it does not clarify the origin and basis of the alleged investigation carried out by the Cicpc, nor the procedural quality under which the university professor must also appear.

«Any summons, to be valid, must necessarily comply with strict requirements of form and substance to ensure its legitimacy and effectiveness, in any judicial or administrative process, with the constitutional purpose of guaranteeing respect for due process. In the case of the “citation” sent to our General Coordinator, it lacks information about the city and date of issuance of the ballot. Furthermore, it does not have numerical identification, according to the internal nomenclature of the police delegation that issued it. Likewise, the official authorized to sign the summons is not identified in the document, with his name and position. Nor does it have his signature.

The NGO also pointed out that nowhere does the summons indicate that it is an investigation initiated by the Public Ministry.as the competent authority and governing entity of the criminal process in Venezuela, and does not indicate that the aforementioned has the right to be assisted by a lawyer at all stages and levels of the investigation and process, in accordance with article 49 of the National Constitution.

«The legal basis of the alleged summons begins with article 238 of the Penal Code, which verbatim states that: ‘Any individual who is called by the judicial authority as a witness, expert, doctor, surgeon or interpreter, excuses himself from appearing without justified reason, will be punished with imprisonment from fifteen days to three months…’ This article refers to the appearance before ‘the judicial authority in its capacity’. That is, this article refers to the appearance before a judge. The Cicpc is not a judicial authority, it is – in accordance with the Decree with Rank, Force and Value of Law of the Corps of Scientific, Criminal and Criminalistic Investigations – ‘a criminal investigation body at the exclusive service of the interests of the State and in no way case to any person or political group’.

Despite all the irregularities indicated, The NGO assured that Murillo will attend said appearance, accompanied by the entire Provea team, «with the peace of mind that comes from having fulfilled and continuing to fulfill our work and with the moral strength that comes from knowing that defending rights is not a crime and being next to the victims, in the field and in any circumstance that requires us, will continue to be our mandate , faithfully fulfilled for 36 years.

«We emphasize that no circumstance of threats, harassment or acts of persecution by the Venezuelan authorities will separate Provea from its uninterrupted work of accompaniment to the victims, documentation, investigation and public dissemination of the serious abuses against Human Rights in Venezuela. . “We will continue, together with the victims, to demand investigation, accountability of those responsible for abuses and helping to preserve memory to advance the construction of a regime of rights that provides guarantees of non-repetition of the crimes that occurred in the present.”

Cabello questioned the work of Provea

On October 30, Diosdado Cabello questioned the work of Provea on his television program Con el mallet giving. There he spoke out about the complaint of the alleged murder of opposition leader Edwin Santos.

“Those who said there are witnesses (to the murder) are going to be summoned to the Cicpc, they are going to have to bring the witnesses so that it is not believed that we are persecuting here, I know of several organizations and NGOs, we are going to call them all and They have to present their witnesses, some say that it was the Sebin, the Dgcim, the National Police, agree (…) if Provea said that it has witnesses, Provea has to look for the witnesses, it does not have to hide that they are a NGO, you crossed the line, on July 28 you crossed the line, the rooster’s bottle is over here,” Cabello said.

Given this, the organization recalled in the text that they They documented and disseminated information about the social leader echoing the public statements of his relatives. through a video made by his wife Loliveth Álvarez and the Jesuit priest, Gerardo Rosales.

«Then, Edwin Santos’ family confirmed his death on October 25, news that had a great impact internationally. These events were documented and disclosed by Provea. Since that moment, the authorities have promoted acts of harassment against those who demand an investigation into the death of Mr. Santos,” the NGO denounced.

IACHR: Members of Provea are in a risk situation

Between 2020 and 2024, the IACHR determined that the members of Provea are in a risk situation within the framework of their work as human rights defenders in the current context that Venezuela is going through.

In April 2024, the IACHR decided to expand its range of protection to all members of Provea, whom it considers at risk due to their work protecting human rights in Venezuela.

“The situation of the members of Provea has been worsening over time, extending the risk situation of the institution’s coordination to all its members,” said the international organization.

The IACHR highlighted that “the existence and dissemination of stigmatizing and pejorative expressions by state authorities against human rights defenders contribute to exacerbating the climate of hostility and intolerance on the part of different sectors of the population, which can lead to affecting the life and personal integrity of defenders, increasing their vulnerability.”