Behind the Catch and Release of a Rebel Chavista Activist
Martha Lía Grajales spoke out against police violence in Caracas’ slums before joining the struggle for political prisoners. Her forced disappearance sparked a dilemma in the ruling elite
Tag: repression
Jesús Armas and the Heavy Price of Defying Maduro
Armas remains an emblematic case of systemic persecution against opposition organizers from the 2024 campaign. Allies of Machado and her party still bear the brunt
A Venezuelan Soccer Final Tainted by a Champion of State Violence
A ruthless colonel backs the winner of a domestic tournament, where his 16-year-old son is a first team player. Twenty-nine fans of the rival team were stopped on the road and arrested
The Targeted Assassination of Ronald Ojeda Moreno
Along with four fellow soldiers, Ronald Ojeda managed to escape a Maduro’ jail and fled to Chile, where he was kidnapped and killed a year ago
221 Politicians, 23 Journalists, and Six Human Rights Activists Detained Since the Presidential Elections
The second half of 2024 and the beginning of 2025 have been marked by one of the "most severe human rights crises in recent history," according to the UN Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela
More than 18 Political Detentions Two Days Prior to Venezuela's Presidential Inauguration
In the lead-up to a tense January 10th, activists, opposition leaders, and foreign nationals are being arrested or disappeared, fueling domestic and international condemnation
Passport Revocations in Venezuela: Low-Cost Post-Electoral Repression
Since the presidential election, an undetermined number of people found their passports annulled, sometimes when trying to leave Venezuela. Among them are journalists and activists
Beyond Fear
Those who worked on the presidential election live under extreme anxiety of being detained at any moment. This is the anonymous testimony of a young activist based in Caracas
Maduro Wants to Turn NGOs Into Informants
A new disposition by the regime would force human rights and humanitarian organizations to report the names of their beneficiaries, including people seeking protection from the State. But the NGOs fight back
In the Dirty Basement of Democracies
The Economist’s Democracy Index ranked Venezuela in position 143, out of 167, while Freedom House gave us 14 points (on a 0 to 100 scale). The pandemic (plus Maduro) took us farther from our dream
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