United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, arrived on Wednesday 19 July to Venezuela for a 3-day visit. On Thursday afternoon, the High Commissioner, human rights organizations and multiple victim groups met. In this space of one hour, 26 spokesmen were able to make requests to the High Commissioner. 20 of these interventions are registered in this document, which represents an overview of the activists’ demands for the human dignity of the country in a context characterized by the lack of democracy, increase in poverty and forced migration.

Below is one of such interventions.

High Commissioner,

In relation to the situation of the defenders of human rights in Venezuela, we must state that since 2002 a systematic policy of criminalization against human rights advocated is implemented.

As of 2013, there has been an increase and worsening of attacks and, legal and factual restrictions to the right to defend human rights. This has been framed in the Doctrina de la Seguridad Nacional (National Security Doctrine) under the logic of the supposed existence of internal enemies of high ranking officials who accuse those who defend human rights of “lying and inflating numbers,” “traitors,” “terrorists,” and “agents that are looking to destabilize the peace of the country.”

In the past three years, from the CDJ, we have been able to register more than 200 attacks or security incidents which affect the work of those of us who defend human rights. Just between June 2018 and June 2019 we have documented and verified at least 59 cases, the most important being: Marco Ponce of the Observatorio Venezolano de Conflictividad Social (Venezuelan Social Divisiveness Watch), Rocío San Miguel from Control ciudadano (Citizen Control), Carlos Nieto of Una Ventana a la Libertad (A Window to Freedom), Francisco Valencia of Codevida, Mercedes de Freitas of Transparencia Venezuela (Transparency Venezuela), Humberto Prado of Observatorio Venezolano de Prisiones (The Venezuelan Prisons Watch) , members of the NGO Provea, members of the Penal Forum.

As of 2018 we have seen an increase in attacks to humanitarian actors, doctors and nurses who denounce the grave health crisis. As well as union representatives and their teams.

In a context that becomes more restrictive and unfavorable for us, human right defenders, we face risks associated with criminalization such as: judicialization, financial audits, search warrants, arbitrary detentions, forced disappearances, physical violence, among other retaliations. Always marked with a speech that seeks to discredit, and that is preceded by intimidation acts, harassments and public denouncements as a retaliation for denouncing and cooperating with International Systems Human Rights protection.

The principal actors of these aggressions are high officials of the government including Nicolás Maduro himself, the President of the National Constitutional Assembly Diosdado Cabello, the General Prosecutor, the District Attorney and Ministers, security and intelligence forces, paramilitary armed groups and paramilitary armed civilians.

It is necessary that those of us who defend human rights in Venezuela can do so in a safe and secure environment, therefore we demand that the Venezuelan State:

  1. Abstain of committing any retaliation against human rights defenders and the victims who cooperate with the Office of the High Commissioner of the United Nations during her visit to Venezuela
  2. Immediately cease all acts of criminalization, intimidation, harassment, depreciation, and aggression towards human rights defenders in Venezuela. As well as it abstain from imposing arbitrary restrictions and limits to free association and on the contrary that its important role in a democratic society be recognized and that the physical and psychological integrity and the protection of their (human rights defenders) lives be protected.
  3. Implements necessary mechanisms to provide and guarantee safe spaces for those who defend human rights in Venezuela, as well as the creation of effective legal resources to protect human rights defenders.
  4. Takes necessary measures to prevent government officials and other public figures from making public statements that stigmatize the legitimate work that human rights defenders do.
  5. Investigates and sanctions those responsible for acts of aggressions against human rights defenders in Venezuela, whether they are State actors or not.
  6. Effectively apply the Declaration of the rights and duties of individuals, groups and institutions that promotes and protects human rights and universally recognized fundamental liberties known as the Declaration on the Rights and Responsibilities of Individuals adopted by the United Nations on December 9, 1998.