Although Chavismo announced 116 releases, arbitrary detentions persist
In addition to the Argentine-Israeli, two Italian citizens who were detained in November 2023 were also released, as well as a Spanish-Venezuelan citizen who is a relative of a renowned human rights defender. The releases, although significant, do not manage to dispel concern about the hundreds of political prisoners who remain incarcerated.
In the Argentine case, the situation remains particularly delicate. So far there is no official information about the release of the gendarme Nahuel Gallo, who has been detained since December 8, 2023 when he was trying to cross the border to visit his family. Gallo remains held in El Rodeo I and his family has publicly denounced the total abandonment by the regime.
There was also no news about the lawyer Germán Darío Giuiliani, another Argentine citizen detained in Venezuela. Unlike Gallo, Giuiliani had already been in the country for weeks before his arrest, which reinforces the hypothesis of selective detentions without due process or legal safeguards.
Meanwhile Chavismo tries to show gestures of openness with partial announcements of releases, the data from Foro Penal are compelling: at least 803 people remain deprived of their freedom for political reasons.
The regime of Venezuela confirmed in recent hours the release of the Argentine-Israeli Yacoov Harari, 72 years old, who had remained detained since September 2023 in the El Rodeo I prison. The information was validated by the NGO Foro Penal, which is responsible for verifying the lists of political prisoners released by Chavismo.
Harari had been arrested on September 4, 2023 and remained deprived of his freedom for more than a year, within the framework of a systematic policy of arbitrary detentions promoted by the regime. His release took place after the fall of Nicolás Maduro, in a context of strong international pressure and growing exposure of human rights violations in the Caribbean country.
According to what was officially reported by Chavista authorities, in the early hours of Monday they announced the release of 116 political prisoners. However, Foro Penal has so far managed to confirm only 50 names, among whom there are several foreign citizens. This discrepancy once again highlights the opacity and lack of transparency with which the Venezuelan repressive apparatus operates.
