Venezuela's interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, announced this Friday the submission of a bill for a general amnesty for political prisoners and the definitive closure of Helicoide as a detention center. The initiative will be sent to the National Assembly and, according to what the president anticipated, it could be discussed and approved next week.
The announcement was made during an event at the Supreme Court of Justice, without the presence of journalists, and was later disseminated by official media. There, Rodríguez stated that the measure seeks to "promote coexistence in Venezuela" and indicated that the decision had been previously discussed with Nicolás Maduro, who has been detained since January 3 following a United States operation.
The future law could benefit hundreds of political prisoners who remain in detention in the country. The announcement comes after a series of partial releases that began following Maduro's capture. According to official figures from Chavismo, more than 600 people were released from prison during that period, although human rights organizations reduce the number to just over 300.
In many cases, those who were released remain under restrictive measures, such as bans on leaving the country or limitations on speaking publicly. Rodríguez clarified that the amnesty will not extend to people convicted of homicide, crimes linked to drug trafficking, or other common crimes, and that the central objective is to erase the legal cases of those who benefit from the regulation.
