The NGO Justicia, Encuentro y Perdón warned that the creation of official records of political prisoners, adjusted to constitutional and international standards, “is a non-transferable obligation of justice agencies.” The Program for Coexistence and Peace called on family members to present their cases and keep a record
The NGO Justice, Encounter and Forgiveness (JEP) criticized this Wednesday the “census” of cases of political prisoners carried out by the Program for Coexistence and Peace – created by the Executive -, since it transfers to the victims responsibilities that correspond to the justice system and the Venezuelan State.
The Coexistence Program had Wednesdays and Thursdays for “care” for relatives of political prisoners at the headquarters of the Rómulo Gallegos Center for Latin American Studies Foundation (Celarg), east of Caracas. This after a meeting the day before with deputies, families, former political prisoners and human rights activists to present their proposals for the amnesty bill.
J.E.P. Indian that the relatives have expressed their “deep anguish and anxiety” at these calls. “These actions aim, once again, to transfer to the victims the responsibility that belongs to the justice system, re-victimizing those who have already borne the weight of persecution and arbitrariness for years.”
Unusual! Between roosters and midnight the “Democratic Peace and Coexistence Program” convened the @Celarg for a census #politicalprisoners where the cases to be amnestied would be registered, this must be a serious and organized process, even relatives denounce chaos in the process and that… pic.twitter.com/1Kc8YMxnlE
— Carlos Julio Rojas (@CarlosJRojas13) February 11, 2026
The NGO warned that the creation of official records adjusted to constitutional and international standards “is a non-transferable obligation of justice agencies.”
“Subjecting family members – who already assume the human and economic cost of supporting the food and health of prisoners – to the burden of generating data under the pressure of an expectation of freedom, constitutes an instrumentalization of pain,” they stated from Justicia, Encuentro y Perdón.
The organization recalled that “there are mobility barriers” among those low-income families who, furthermore, do not reside in the Caracas Metropolitan Area. Likewise, he considers that “the reality of hundreds of relatives who today are in exile as a direct consequence of the human rights crisis in Venezuela” is ignored.
JEP stressed that the State “possesses the files and knows the causes”, so the Organic Code of Criminal Procedure should be applied for the restoration of freedom, instead of it being a process “subject to the physical presence or the ability to mobilize of the victims.”
Despite the existence of an email ([email protected]) to send information, the organization indicated that many family members have expressed their fear “of being located and being victims of reprisals” when reporting particular cases.
«We remind families that their pain is legitimate and that they are not alone. Our technical documentation work is still in force and the information about their cases has already been provided to international protection mechanisms and to the actors involved in the defense of human rights,” the NGO highlighted.
Dozens of people participated in the “census” day, some of them relatives who have spent the night outside detention centers since last January 8, when the president of the National Assembly announced “a large number” of releases.
They asked the family members for information and their story was recorded in writing. «We hope that this is not shelved, that they are not making fun of us and that we soon have a response from our relatives. There are 32 Gideons who are missing, who are in Fort Guaicaipuro because that’s where they called us,” said Maira Morales, sister of Ricardo Fonseca.
The 32 convicted of Operation Gedeón, as the attempted incursion along the Venezuelan coast in May 2020 is known, were held in the Sebin Helicoide until a series of arbitrary transfers that took place on July 31, August 5 and 10, 2025.
Two weeks ago they received a call so they could bring in parcels, which only consisted of bread and five liters of water. A few days ago, relatives of prisoners in this prison received another call asking them to send antibiotics, antifungals, sulfur soap and pain medicine. “We don’t know how they are, nor do they tell us when the visit will be,” commented the wife of First Lieutenant Willian Paredes, who has served his sentence but was also transferred to that prison.
*Journalism in Venezuela is carried out in a hostile environment for the press with dozens of legal instruments in place to punish the word, especially the laws “against hate”, “against fascism” and “against the 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.
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