Torture in Venezuela

Torture in Venezuela has been a controversial issue in recent years, especially during the crisis in Venezuela. The United Nations, Organization of American States, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Foro Penal have denounced acts of violence and torture towards those who oppose the Bolivarian government.[1][2][3][4][5]

El Helicoide, facility and prison of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN) where prisoners have described systemic torture and human rights violations.

State institutions such as the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN) have been accused of torturing opponents of the Bolivarian government.[6][7][8][9][10]

Colonial era

Under rule of the Royal Audiencia of Caracas and the Spanish Inquisition, inhabitants of Venezuela faced serious repression.[11] The Catholic Church served as an important source to royalists, with priests serving as informants who would provide accusations to Inquisition judges because they believed crimes against the Spanish king were crimes against God.[11] Judges then held the power to torture those accused of crimes during interrogations in order to obtain a confession.[11] However, this practice was rare in Spanish-ruled Venezuela since it had already become controversial, even in Europe.[11]

When the Royal Audiencia was deposed and the Supreme Junta was established, the Venezuelan Declaration of Independence explicitly stated that the death penalty was abolished, torture was forbidden and that courts would presume innocence.[11] However as Venezuela began to face conflicts shortly after its independence, repressive behaviors within the government returned.[11]

Juan Vicente Gómez
Cells of La Rotunda in 1924

In 1854, a house of correction called "La Rotunda" was built to rehabilitate common criminals.[12][13] Under President Juan Pablo Rojas Paúl, La Rotunda was converted into a prison.[12] La Rotunda grew in prominence under the governments of Cipriano Castro and Juan Vicente Gómez between 1900 and 1935, who heavily utilized the prison for political persecution.[12][13] Types of punishment and torture included being placed in stocks, strappado, ball and chain, having a rope tightened around your temple and having poison or ground glass placed into food.[12][13] It was not uncommon that prisoners were tortured or starved to death.[12]

Marcos Pérez Jiménez

Under the dictator Marcos Pérez Jiménez, Venezuelan authorities held little regard for the human rights of citizens. Police often raided homes without search warrants and individuals were imprisoned without evidence. While initially detained, individuals faced torture in instances of interrogation.[14] Political police targeted, arrested, tortured and killed his opponents.[15] Those who were attacked include future Venezuelan president Rómulo Betancourt, Jaime Lusinchi and Luis Herrera Campins.[15] Lusinchi was jailed for two months in 1952 and was beaten with a sword.[16]

Democratic era

According to Human Rights Watch, the Carlos Andrés Pérez administration also tortured and executed opponents with a judicial branch that largely ignored abuses by his government.[14] The Caracas Metropolitan Police and DISIP were used as tools to persecute dissenters.[14] Following the 1992 Venezuelan coup d'état attempts, a crackdown on alleged plotters resulted in accusations of torture by those arrested.[14]

Bolivarian Revolution
La Tumba (The Tomb), a SEBIN prison where many prisoners have been tortured

Under the Bolivarian governments, levels of torture occurred that had not been seen since the dictatorship of Marcos Pérez Jiménez.[17] Following the election of Hugo Chávez, human rights in Venezuela deteriorated. According to Universidad Metropolitana in 2006, "the inquisitorial process" that was abolished in the Venezuelan Declaration of Independence returned to Venezuela.[11] By 2009, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights released a report stating that Venezuela's government practiced "repression and intolerance".[18]

During the presidency of Nicolás Maduro, torture in Venezuela increased. In La Tumba (The Tomb), one of the headquarters and prisons of SEBIN, has been used for white torture and some of its prisoners have attempted suicide.[7][8][9] Conditions in La Tumba have resulted with prisoner illnesses, though Venezuelan authorities refuse to medically treat those imprisoned.[10] Bright lights are continuously left on and prison cells are set at near-freezing temperatures.[6][7][9]

In December 2014, the United States signed Venezuela Defense of Human Rights and Civil Society Act of 2014 to impose targeted sanctions on Venezuelan individuals responsible for human rights violations as a result of the 2014 Venezuelan protests.[19][20] The law allows the freezing of assets and visa bans for those accused of using acts of violence or violating the human rights of those opposing the Venezuelan government.[21] In March 2015, the United States froze assets and revoked visas of several senior officials connected to human rights abuses in Venezuela; these sanctions were condemned in Latin America.[22]

In November 2014, Venezuela appeared before the United Nations Committee Against Torture over cases between 2002 and 2014, which criticized the Venezuelan National Commission for the Prevention of Torture for being biased in favor towards the Bolivarian government.[23][24][25] The Committee had also expressed concern with "beatings, burnings and electric shocks in efforts to obtain confessions" that occurred during the 2014 Venezuelan protests and that of the 185 investigations for abuses during the protests, only 5 individuals had been charged.[26] United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan E. Méndez stated on 11 March 2015 that Venezuela had ignored requests for information and that he had made "conclusions based on the lack of response" and "concluded that the government violated the rights of prisoners", further saying that the Maduro government failed "with the obligation to investigate, prosecute and punish all acts of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment".[27]

During the 2017 Venezuelan protests, more than 290 cases of torture and thousands of extrajudicial executions were documented by the Organization of American States.[2]

Foreign involvement

The Organization of American States, with information provided by Casla, reported that some of the 46,000 members of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces assisting the government of Nicolás Maduro were involved with torturing Venezuelans who opposed Maduro. Prisoners reported that they recognized Cuban accents among those who were torturing them.[28]

References
  1. "Venezuela: UN rights chief decries excessive force used against protesters". The Guardian. 8 August 2017. Archived from the original on 13 August 2017. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  2. Smith, Marie-Danielle (30 May 2018). "Canada introduces new sanctions on Venezuelan regime in wake of devastating report on crimes against humanity". National Post. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  3. Venezuela's Brutal Crime Crackdown: Executions, Machetes and 8,292 Dead
  4. "Venezuela: Senior Officials' Responsibility for Abuses". Human Rights Watch. 15 June 2017. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
  5. Martín, Karina (16 May 2017). "Venezuelan Regime Steps up Torture against Protesters, Forces Them to Eat Excrement". PanAm Post. Archived from the original on 12 June 2017. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  6. "Un calabozo macabro". Univision. 2015. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  7. Vinogradoff, Ludmila (10 February 2015). ""La tumba", siete celdas de tortura en el corazón de Caracas". ABC. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  8. "UNEARTHING THE TOMB: INSIDE VENEZUELA'S SECRET UNDERGROUND TORTURE CHAMBER". Fusion. 2015. Archived from the original on July 29, 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  9. "Political protesters are left to rot in Venezuela's secretive underground prison". News.com.au. 25 July 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  10. "Statement of Santiago A. Canton Executive Director, RFK Partners for Human Rights Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights" (PDF). United States Senate. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 29, 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  11. Pérez Perdomo, Rogelio (January 2006). "La justicia penal en Venezuela al final del Periodo Colonial: el caso de Gual y España". Anales de la Universidad Metropolitana. Universidad Metropolitana. 6 (1).
  12. "La Rotunda representó tortura y muerte para presos políticos". El Impulso (in Spanish). 2018-05-21. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  13. "La Rotunda". Venezuela Tuya. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  14. "Human Rights in Venezuela" (PDF). Human Rights Watch. October 1993.
  15. Ledezma, Eurídice (2001-09-21). "Obituary: General Marcos Pérez Jiménez". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  16. Cumberbatch, Nigel (2 February 1984). "Jaime Lusinchi, who overcame political imprisonment and torture under..." UPI. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  17. "tatement of Santiago A. Canton Executive Director, RFK Partners for Human Rights Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights" (PDF). United States Senate. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 29, 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  18. Rory, Carroll (2014). Comandante : Hugo Chavez's Venezuela. Penguin Books: New York. pp. 182–194. ISBN 978-0-14-312488-7.
  19. "S.2142 – Venezuela Defense of Human Rights and Civil Society Act of 2014". Congress.gov. Archived from the original on 13 December 2014. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
  20. "OBAMA SIGNS BILL TO SANCTION VENEZUELAN OFFICIALS". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  21. "Obama Signs Bill to Sanction Venezuelan Officials". ABC News. 18 December 2014. Archived from the original on 1 January 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  22. Goodman, Joshua; Orsi, Peter (7 April 2015). "Latin America silent on Venezuela as US airs rights concerns". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 8 April 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  23. "Venezuela ante la ONU: "Puede haber individuos armados dentro de los colectivos"". Infobae. 8 November 2014. Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  24. "Venezuela tuvo que responder por más de 3.000 casos de tortura ante Naciones Unidas". Infobae. 6 November 2014. Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  25. "Estado no respondió con precisión preguntas de la ONU sobre casos de tortura". El Nacional. 8 November 2014. Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  26. "U.N. watchdog urges Venezuela to investigate torture allegations". Reuters. 28 November 2014. Archived from the original on 28 November 2014. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  27. "Venezuela violó derecho internacional al no prevenir tortura". La Verdad. 11 March 2015. Archived from the original on 13 March 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  28. "Agentes cubanos asisten a Maduro para torturar a los opositores". ABC (in Spanish). Retrieved 2018-11-29.
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