The Colombian Foreign Ministry reported this Friday that, after months of dialogue with Venezuela, at least 17 were released. Colombians who were imprisoned in prisons in that country accused of various crimes.
“After months of dialogue and diplomatic coordination, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia, with the leadership of the Foreign Minister, Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio Mapy, achieved the release of a first group of 17 Colombians who were deprived of their liberty in different penitentiary centers in Venezuela,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
On October 12, the Vice Minister of Multilateral Affairs of Colombia, Mauricio Jaramillo Jassir, announced that the government had begun efforts to address the “humanitarian crisis” of at least 40 Colombian citizens deprived of their liberty in Venezuela.
“This is a step significant in the task of guaranteeing the rights of our fellow citizens and responding to the calls of their families. The protection of Colombians abroad is a priority of the government of President Gustavo Petro,” Minister Villavicencio said today.
The release process, developed in “close collaboration” with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela, was accompanied by the Colombian ambassador to that country, Milton Rengifo Hernández; the consul in San Cristóbal, David Gilberto Haddad Clavijo; the consul in San Antonio del Táchira, Jesús Alberto Grueso Zúñiga, and the director of Migration Colombia, Gloria Esperanza Arriero López.
The officials “supervised the verification procedure and liberation that took place in the municipality of Pedro María Ureña, state of Táchira, Venezuela“, detailed the information from the Foreign Ministry.
Villavicencio reaffirmed that he will maintain dialogue with his Venezuelan counterpart, Yván Gil, to coordinate the next steps in favor of other Colombian citizens who are still detained in Venezuelan prisons, including the evaluation of repatriations.
Likewise, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterated “its commitment to continue using diplomatic channels to ensure that detainees receive consular assistance, due process and dignified treatment.
“We will continue working with the Venezuelan authorities so that no Colombian is left helpless. Diplomacy is also expressed in humanitarian gestures,” concluded Minister Villavicencio.
On several occasions, relatives and friends of Colombians imprisoned in Venezuela have asked Petro and Congress to intervene in the release of their relatives, who they say are “arbitrarily detained and are not criminals.”
The Colombians were detained in Venezuela in recent months, during which time their relatives have practically not been able to communicate with them.
