The review of cases of political prisoners leaves more than 200 released

In the context of a Venezuela marked by repression and political control, the recent releases of political prisoners have generated a mix of relief and skepticism. According to the announcement by Attorney General Tarek William Saab, the release of more detainees who were arrested after the controversial presidential elections on July 28 is expected. However, for the families of those imprisoned, this promise is no guarantee of justice.

In a judicial system where political prisoners are deprived of basic rights such as access to lawyers, hearings and impartial trials, the announced releases are perceived more as political maneuvers than as acts of rectification. Hope for the freedom of the more than 2,400 detainees remains alive, but it is shrouded in the shadow of a regime that uses these actions as an instrument to perpetuate fear and maintain its control.

This work explores the reality behind the announced releases, the human cost of the uncertainty that families face and the constant fight for justice in a context where fear is the main tool of power.

The repressive machinery of the Venezuelan regime in the dilapidated cells of Venezuela, where light barely filters through corroded bars, there are more than 2,200 people, men, women and even minors, converted into pieces of an oppressive machine that gives no respite. . They are hostagescitizens deprived of their liberty under a regime that has made imprisonment its most effective weapon to stifle dissent and perpetuate control.

Prisons that scream injustice

Last week, according to figures from the attorney general given this Wednesday, 225 people crossed the border between silence and parole. Among them, some minors, whose innocence was trapped in the framework of a system that does not discriminate. when it comes to punishing.

“The releases are a screen,” says a human rights lawyer who prefers to remain anonymous. “For every one that leaves, two others enter. The message is clear: prison is there for those who dare to question,” he added.

In Venezuela, being a political prisoner does not always mean having raised a banner or led a protest. It only takes a comment on social media, a look in the wrong place or an uncomfortable relationship to fall into the clutches of a judicial system that has become an executioner.

Nearly three months after the government detained some 2,000 people in a crackdown following a disputed presidential election, using each person to sow fear, authorities have announced plans to release more prisoners.

Maduro calls on judges to review post-election arrests and “rectify” in case of error

The president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, asked the country’s judges and the Prosecutor’s Office to review the arrests registered after the elections of July 28, as well as the respective judicial processes, to “rectify” in case there have been errors.

“I call on Dr. Tarek William Saab, attorney general, I call on the judges of the country, as head of state, if there is any case to rectify and also review that there is justice,” said the president in his weekly program television called Maduro +.

These statements come four days after relatives of the detainees read in Caracas – outside the Palace of Justice – a letter in which they asked the president for a measure of grace that grants full and immediate freedom to those arrested, whose total It was 2,400, according to the Executive.

Venezuela’s Attorney General, Tarek William Saab, confirmed the release of 225 people who were detained during protests following the July 28 presidential elections, in which the opposition denounces fraud.

“Between the afternoon of Friday the 15th and Saturday the 16th, 225 freedom measures were granted and executed to people prosecuted for the acts of violence that occurred after the elections of July 28,” the Public Ministry reported in a statement.

The releases “were requested in accordance with Article 285 of the Constitution,” which specifies the general powers of the Public Ministry and after “exhaustive investigations based on new evidence and elements of evidence collected by prosecutors.”

Saab stressed that These releases are the result of the work of the Public Ministry and the Judiciary. The Public Ministry has not released the list official on those released.

Venezuelan opponents welcomed the release of several dozen considered “political prisoners.” However, the opposition coalition insists that all prisoners be released for political reasons.

A conditional release

The NGO Foro Penal, dedicated to the defense of human rights, confirmed that at least 131 political prisoners have been released since Saturday, although it stressed that the alternative measures imposed by the Chavista courts limit their true freedom. Among those released are minors and two Spanish citizens.

According to the Committee for the Freedom of Political Prisoners, these releases have occurred in centers such as Tocorón, Tocuyito and La Crisálida.

Precautionary measures have been imposed on those released to prevent them from telling the press about the mistreatment they suffered.

Luis Alarcón, a 22-year-old young man who suffers from diabetes and spent months imprisoned in Tocorón, was one of those released. His photograph, released by the NGO Fundehullan, reflects the weakened physical state of those who have experienced the cruelty of the Venezuelan prison system.

A weapon of political control

Venezuelan prisons have been transformed into tools of repression, where more than 2,000 political prisoners have been arbitrarily detained, according to reports from international organizations. For many, the regime’s objective is clear: to silence dissent, intimidate the population and dismantle any form of resistance.

The human cost of fear

Prisons are not only a place of physical punishment, but also a space where the regime tries to break wills. Detainees face physical and psychological torture, inhumane conditions, and a system that denies them basic rights. But beyond the walls, the families of the prisoners also live a perpetual sentence: uncertainty.

The parents, children and brothers of political prisoners carry a grief that does not end. They live waiting for lawyers, for rumors, for lists that promise releases that almost never include the name they expect. Every day is a battle against silence, a wait full of desperation and fear.

Despite the terror that accompanies every news story, every door that opens or every visit to court, many families do not give up. Clinging to hope, they face fear with the strength of love for those who are detained. For them, the freedom of their loved ones is not just a desire, it is a reason to resist.

In the midst of uncertainty, they find strength in small gestures: an unexpected call, a rumor that announces possible releases or even the smile of someone who has already regained their freedom. These families, although broken inside, keep the flame of hope alive, because they know that it is the only thing that can alleviate the weight of injustice.

The human cost of fear is enormous. Venezuelan prisons destroy lives not only within their walls, but also outside them. However, in the midst of pain, families do not give up; They keep waiting, they keep fighting, because hope, even in its faintest form, is their last refuge from oppression.

«We had not seen the detention of boys, girls and adolescents with this magnitude in Venezuela«. This was stated by the Venezuelan Prisons Observatory (OVP)

Minors form one of the most disturbing aspects of this crisis. According to the OVP, children and adolescents have been arrested in mass raids or for simple acts of protest, a practice that flagrantly violates the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Some minors detained after the elections in northern Venezuela released, according to NGO

Five teenagers detained after protests against the official result of the presidential elections of July 28 in Venezuela were released from a prison in the state of La Guaira, the NGO Venezuelan Prison Observatory (OVP) reported this Sunday.

The organization indicated in X that the minors were released on Saturday night and shared a video of the young people meeting their families outside the detention center.

Meanwhile, the Venezuelan opposition asks Unicef ​​to intervene in defense of minors detained by the Maduro regime. The document presented to the UN agency estimates that more than 70 children and adolescents are held in adult prisons.

The president of the NGO Foro Penal, Alfredo Romero, indicated on Instagram that in the Aragua state penitentiary center, known as Tocorón, 50 young adults have been released, with precautionary measures. “We must remember that in Tocorón there are more than 900 political prisoners due to the post-election situation,” he highlighted.

For its part, the Committee for the Freedom of Political Prisoners noted in The committee expressed its joy for those freed, but did not hide its indignation for those who remain behind bars.

List of political prisoners, according to the Venezuelan Penal Forum: CHECK HERE