The National College of Journalists demanded full and immediate freedom for all press workers and announced that it will request a hearing with the Attorney General of the Republic, Tarek William Saab, to advocate for detained loos
The National College of Journalists (CNP), Caracas Section, denounced on Tuesday, April 15 that the country became “a hostile place for journalists” for the danger of being detained and imprisoned without conviction or judgment “because the government considers them their enemies.”
The complaint was made by the Secretary General of the CNP, Caracas Section, Édgar Cárdenas, during a press conference in which he was accompanied by representatives of the NGO Venezuelan Program of Education Action in Human Rights (PROPERA).
Cárdenas expressed “deep concern of the professional guild for arbitrary arrests of journalists in Venezuela who are invented a record with false accusations without any proof.”
In the same way, he stated that in recent years the conditions of the exercise of journalists have deteriorated with “arbitrary arrests, media closures and systematic persecution”, which he insists of the nation “a hostile place for journalistic work.”
The journalist also emphasized that “repression intensified after the presidential elections of July 28, 2024 and add more than 400 media closed between 2007 and 2025.”
He added that so far from 2025, 54 attacks on the press have been counted and recorded cases of intimidation, impediment of coverage, threats, harassment, stations closure, theft and confiscation of equipment, physical and verbal aggressions.
Arbitrary arrests
The union leader recode the case of Carlos Julio Rojas, arrested on April 15, 2024, and accused by the authorities of terrorism, conspiracy and attempt of magnicide.
“But without evidence or evidence and point it as a film character, a superman capable of destroying a whole security ring, which they do not believe it,” he said.
*Also read: Carlos Julio Rojas turns detained and without access to private defense
Édgar Cárdenas also referred the case of the reporter Nakary Mena, of impact Venezuela, arrested on April 8, 2025 with her husband, Gianni González: “They are accused by copying the same invented libretto: incitement to hatred and false news about alleged robberies in Caracas, which government officials do not like.”
The list of currently detained journalists is completed by Leandro Palmar, Julio César Balza, Biagio Pilieri, José Camero, Luis López, Ramón Centeno, Omar González and several press workers among them the cameraman Belises Cubillán.
“Everyone must be released immediately,” The Secretary General of CNP Caracas claimed who announced that he will request a hearing with the Attorney General of the Republic, Tarek William Saab, to advocate his detained colleagues.
For his part, the General Coordinator of Prova, Oscar Murillo, called on the government authorities and the Judiciary to cease the persecution, harassment and aggressions against journalists and defenders of human rights. “Freedom of information and expression is a consecrated universal right, in addition, in the Venezuelan Constitution and are constantly being violated,” he said.
*Journalism in Venezuela is exercised in a hostile environment for the press with dozens of legal instruments arranged for the punishment of the word, especially the laws “against hatred”, “against fascism” and “against blockade.” This content was written taking into consideration the threats and limits that, consequently, have been imposed on the dissemination of information from within the country.
Post views: 142
