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Michelle Bachelet demands the release of all political prisoners in Venezuela

2020-02-27T19:57:07.960Z


The UN Commissioner for Human Rights also expressed concern about the threat to freedoms in Colombia, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala.


02/27/2020 - 16:32

  • Clarín.com
  • World

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, called on Thursday to the government of Nicolás Maduro for the unconditional release of "all persons detained for political reasons" in Venezuela, and noted that her office documented more than 130 cases of violations of Human Rights to detainees.

In an intervention before the first annual session of the Human Rights Council in which he detailed the situation in ten countries, half of them Latin American, the former Chilean president also expressed concern about the threats to fundamental freedoms in Colombia, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Honduras, and called on their governments to follow the recommendations of their office in favor of those freedoms.

On Venezuela, Bachelet highlighted an increase in collaboration between the Maduro government and its office. But he denounced the situation in the prisons .

Nicolas Maduro's government rejects criticism from the UN and says "there are no political prisoners" in Venezuela. / BLOOMBERG

Representatives of the Bachelet office in Venezuela have been able to make several visits to prisons in which they have interviewed 28 people "confidentially", documenting "more than 130 cases of alleged violations of Human Rights of persons deprived of liberty."

"I take note of the release of 14 people in January and reiterate my call to unconditionally release all those detained for political reasons," said the high commissioner.

The Venezuelan delegation responded that in the country "there are no people detained for political reasons," he questioned the objectivity of the reports of the office led by Bachelet and said that the 130 documented cases "have already been timely addressed."

"The staff of the high commissioner has been able to verify that the situation of human rights in Venezuela is far from the panorama that a group of governments in this Council draws to pay homage to their master in North America," the delegation proclaimed.

Bachelet revealed that his office has initiated talks with the Maduro government "for the adoption of a protocol that would allow observing trials and monitoring respect for judicial guarantees."

The head of Human Rights of the UN visited Venezuela last June, after which she presented a very critical report with the Maduro government, which she accused of reducing the democratic space and breaching her obligation to guarantee food and medical care.

However, he also expressed concern "about the potentially severe impact on Human Rights of the new set of sanctions imposed by the United States Government", despite the exceptions contemplated in the area of ​​humanitarian assistance.

The situation in Colombia

On Colombia, Bachelet expressed concern about the use of the army to answer social protests, or the persistence of high levels of violence that led to serious human rights violations, including 36 massacres.

"Defending human rights remains a high-risk work in Colombia," Bachelet said, noting that in 2019 his office documented at least 108 murders of activists (the Colombian Ombudsman raises this number to 134).

In the turn of replies, the Colombian representative regretted that the Bachelet office "did not produce a more complete analysis, which more accurately reflects the reality of Colombia", and accused her of not offering viable proposals to advance the improvement of the Human rights in the country.

Members of the Colombian army stand guard in Bogotá during a national strike last November. / EFE

The official added that the Colombian authorities "saved no efforts to protect human rights leaders and defenders," and attributed the attacks against these activists to armed groups and criminal organizations that pose "the greatest challenge" to the Government.

Nicaragua

Regarding Nicaragua, the high commissioner said that since the presentation of her last report on that country in September 2019 "human rights violations have not ceased, within the framework of an extremely complex political and social context."

"Organizations of victims who demand justice, truth and reparation, their leaders and their lawyers continue to be subject to threats and intimidation," while "the right to peaceful protest is systematically denied," Bachelet denounced.

A protester confronts the police, during a protest against the government of Daniel Ortega, in the capital of Nicaragua, Managua, on September 2018./AFP

The former Chilean president said in this regard that the massive police deployments discourage Nicaraguans from demonstrating, and when there were protests, "the police abruptly dispersed them or pro-government elements attacked them with violence."

Bachelet recalled that 61 people were still deprived of liberty for reasons related to the 2018 protests, and that 40 of them had been arrested after the Amnesty Law of June 2019 entered into force, according to civil society organizations.

The Nicaraguan delegation responded that already in March 2019, when a resolution against Nicaragua was passed in the same Human Rights Council, "we reject the distorted use of these mechanisms to intervene in a country that has been solving its main challenges in the matter at the root of human rights. "

He said that Nicaragua is "the safest country in the region", despite the fact that "foreign-funded groups have tried to disturb the peaceful environment of our nation."

As for Guatemala, Bachelet asked the authorities to adopt effective and comprehensive measures to prevent attacks against human rights defenders and members of judicial institutions.

In relation to Honduras, the high commissioner recalled the high levels of poverty, violence and insecurity, which have affected the emigration of many citizens to North America, and asked the National Justice to continue the investigation of the murder of the human rights defender Berta Cáceres, murdered in 2016.

Source: EFE and DPA

Source: clarin

All news articles on 2020-02-27

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