What changed

B90183/2024

B90179/2024

Motion for a European Parliament resolution on the case of Rocío San Miguel and General Hernández Da Costa, among other political prisoners in Venezuela

The European Parliament,

The European Parliament,

– having regard to its previous resolutions on Venezuela,

– having regard to Rule 144 of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas the use of politically motivated arbitrary detentions are part of a policy of repression implemented by the government of Nicolás Maduro and part of a widespread and systematic attack against the population of Venezuela;

A. whereas there are over 300 political prisoners in Venezuela, some of which have an EU nationality;

B. whereas the lawyer, professor and human rights defender Rocío San Miguel was arbitrarily detained on 9 February 2024 and accused of treason, conspiracy, terrorism, and association to commit crimes;

B. whereas on 9 February 2024 Rocío San Miguel, a lawyer and human rights activists that has Spanish nationality, was kidnapped by the regime together with family members, and sentenced on politically motivated grounds of suspected attempted conspiracy against Maduro and the regime; whereas she is detained in El Helicoide — notoriously known for human rights abuses, including torture;

C. whereas General Hernández Da Costa, who has been detained since 2018, needs urgent medical treatment as his health condition has been worsening significantly in recent weeks;

C. whereas the Maduro regime expelled the U.N. human rights office accusing them of “colonialist, abusive” behaviour and fomenting political opposition, which was prompted after the U.N. commissioner condemned the arrest of San Miguel;

D. whereas Nicolás Maduro’s government has continually harassed, persecuted and censored activists and civil society organizations in the midst of a complex humanitarian emergency and a profound human rights crisis that is pushing an unprecedented number of people to flee in search of safety and protection;

D. whereas General Hernández Da Costa is a political prisoner since August 2018; whereas on 19 February 2024, he was forcibly transferred to the prison El Rodeo 1, designed to detain political prisoners; whereas an unknown number of prisoners were forcibly transferred to this prison in precarious conditions, without sufficient sustenance; whereas families are allowed 15 minutes visits the prisoners through a glass, after being blindfolded; whereas the General suffers from medical ailments that require constant medical treatment, which he is being denied;

E. whereas on 9 January 2024, the National Assembly resumed consideration of a bill that seeks to restrict and potentially criminalise and close NGOs operating in Venezuela and represents another attempt to restrict and control civil society in Venezuela;

E. whereas on 21 February 2024, former political prisoner Ronald Ojeda was forcibly disappeared in Santiago, Chile; whereas his mutilated body was found some days later in another part of the city;

F. whereas on 15 February, the Venezuelan government announced it was suspending the activities of the Office of the United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) after they expressed "deep concern" about the arrest of Rocio San Miguel and urged her immediate release & respect for her right to legal defence;

F. whereas four staffers of the presidential candidate of the opposition to the regime María Corina Machado, namely Juan Freites, Luis Camacaro, Guillermo Lopez and Emil Brandt, have also been detained on political grounds and are incommunicado;

G. whereas these facts signal a concerning escalation in the country’s attempts to evade international scrutiny and accountability and are intended to crush government opposition in the lead-up to the elections to be held on 28 July 2024;

1. Strongly condemns the Maduro Regime for imprisoning hundreds of political prisoners;

1. Calls on the Venezuelan government to immediately cease its policy of repression, cease all attacks on civil society and immediately and unconditionally release all individuals arbitrarily detained for political reasons;

2. Deplores that these prisoners are held in conditions that don’t meet the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners;

2. Calls on the Venezuelan government to provide unhindered access to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders and the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, as well as other UN Special Procedure mandates, and cooperate with international scrutiny and justice mechanisms;

3. Demands the immediate unconditional release and compensation of all political prisoners, as well as their families and arbitrarily detained persons, while restoring their full rights;

3. Calls on the European External Action Service, the EU Delegation in Venezuela, the Member States and the international community to engage with the Venezuelan authorities up to the highest level, including publicly, for the immediate and unconditional release of individuals arbitrarily detained for political reasons and to step up engagement during an expected surge in the government’s policy of repression in the context of the election period;

4. Urges the Chilean authorities to investigate the possible connection between the murder of Ronald Ojeda and the Maduro regime;

4. Urges the Member States to maintain the sanctions imposed;

5. Calls on the VP/HR and the Council to impose stronger sanctions on the Maduro regime, including high-level officials, members of the security forces, members of the regime’s Supreme Tribunal of Justice and Maduro himself;

5. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the EU-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States summit participants, the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly, the Organization of American States, the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Venezuelan authorities.

6. Fully supports the ICC investigations into the Venezuelan regime’s extensive crimes and acts of repression and urges the EU to support the investigations into the alleged crimes against humanity;

7. Calls for the EU to support a return to democracy in Venezuela particularly for the elections of 28 July 2024, which ensures that the leader of the opposition to the regime, María Corina Machado, can participate freely;

8. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the VP/HR, the Member States, the EU-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, the Organization of American States, the UN Secretary-General and the Venezuelan regime.