The Venezuelan opposition party Primero Justicia (PJ) spoke out this Wednesday about the recent releases of political prisoners in the countrydescribing them as insufficient to end what they consider a system of permanent government repression.
“We urge the dismantling of the apparatus of repression and the definitive end of the revolving door: releasing to imprison again is another form of persecution,” PJ said in a statement published on its X account. The group insisted that the releases, although celebrated, do not represent a structural solution and demanded concrete actions by the State.
Among its demands, the party requested the publication of a official list with the names of those released, with the aim of verifying that the figures “correspond with reality”, following statements by the President of Parliament, Jorge Rodríguez, who mentioned the existence of “lists” of those released, which have not yet been disclosed.
The opposition also requested the participation of international organizations such as the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, with the purpose of serving as “independent observers” of the process. In addition, they demanded an immediate evaluation of physical health status and mental health of all political prisoners, both those released and those who remain detained, and reiterated the need to “empty all the cells where citizens detained for political reasons remain today.”
They reveal disparity between official figures
In terms of figures, the PUD reported that at least 100 political prisoners have been released since last Thursday, after Rodríguez will announce the release of a “significant number” of detainees. These releases occur days after the United States captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
For her part, Delcy Rodríguez, acting president, reported this Wednesday that to date there have been released 406 political prisoners in the country. According to the official, this measure seeks to open a new chapter that allows understanding from political diversity.
However, the NGO Foro Penal, which has been monitoring the number of political prisoners since last week, counted 72 releases as of Wednesday, well below the official figures. The organization had recorded more than 800 arrests on Sunday, evidencing discrepancies between government data and independent observers.
