Venezuela: State of emergency demands immediate protection of human rights

Over the last decade, Venezuela has undergone a multidimensional crisis marked by the erosion of the rule of law, the total closure of civic space and serious and systematic human rights violations, in a context of prolonged humanitarian emergency that disproportionately affects the most vulnerable sectors of the population.

This situation worsened after the presidential elections of 28 July 2024, when political persecution and repression intensified alarmingly. Since then, the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and international human rights organisations have documented and denounced arbitrary detentions, torture and cruel treatment, acts of harassment, censorship and criminalisation, as well as severe restrictions on freedom of expression.

At the same time, millions of people have continued to face serious and growing obstacles to accessing food, health services and other basic economic and social rights.

Following the United States' military intervention, its attempts to administer Venezuelan territory, and the Venezuelan authorities' declaration of a state of emergency, the situation has become even more complex and unstable. In this context, we urge the adoption of immediate, effective and coordinated measures to guarantee the protection of the civilian population, full and unrestricted respect for their human rights, and compliance with the international obligations incumbent on both Venezuela and the United States under international law.

Given the risk of new and serious human rights violations in Venezuela, the restriction of the rights of peaceful assembly and association, the authorisation of preventive detentions and the militarisation of strategic infrastructure, we join the call of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission and reiterate that the priority in this crisis must be to guarantee the human rights of the Venezuelan people.

We also urge the Venezuelan authorities to immediately guarantee the protection of all human rights defenders, ensure freedom of expression and journalistic work, and provide information on the situation of people deprived of liberty, ensuring that their families have effective access to information about their status and conditions, in compliance with the State's international obligations.

In this regard, we emphasise the need to promote a comprehensive human rights agenda that underpins genuine dialogue and negotiation. It is a priority to advance confidence-building and rights-guaranteeing measures, including the full and immediate release of people deprived of liberty for political reasons, as an initial and indispensable step towards any sustainable understanding.

We urge the international community to take a more active and effective role in promoting and protecting human rights in Venezuela by maintaining ongoing monitoring of the situation, cooperating with international accountability mechanisms, and supporting initiatives to ensure the safety and protection of the civilian population.

The complexity and depth of the Venezuelan crisis require a coordinated, sustained, and principled response that places human dignity and unrestricted respect for human rights at the centre of all political action. Such a response must also ensure accountability for the serious human rights violations and crimes against humanity committed in the country, as an indispensable condition for justice, victim reparations, and non-repetition.