Hundreds Of Political Prisoners Still Held in Venezuela As Releases Stall, Local Rights Monitor Says

Nearly 800 political prisoners remain detained in Venezuela despite a series of announced releases earlier this month, according to a local rights monitoring group, which noted that the process has slowed and has not resulted in full freedom for those affected.

Foro Penal reported that it has documented 777 political prisoners nationwide, following 143 releases recorded between Jan. 8 and late Monday. No new releases have been confirmed since Saturday.

The announcement came days after Venezuelan authorities said they had begun freeing detainees in the aftermath of the Jan. 3 capture of Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, by U.S. authorities.

"These releases do not amount to full freedom," said Alfredo Romero, the group's director, in a video statement posted online. "We continue to wait for the total release of political prisoners, because excarceration does not mean these people are truly free." He said many of those released remain subject to restrictions, including bans on leaving the country and, in numerous cases, prohibitions on speaking to the media.

Families of detainees have maintained vigils outside prisons since Jan. 8, sleeping near detention centers as they wait for official information about further releases and the legal status of their relatives, as Infobae reports. The arrests stem largely from the period following the July 28, 2024 presidential election, after which more than 2,400 people were detained, according to official figures.

Clippve, a separate Venezuelan human rights group, told La República on Monday that the situation may be broader. Its spokesman, Diego Casanova Maita, said more than 1,345 people remain "arbitrarily" detained, including children and teenagers. "They have no access to due process. They are detained without judicial warrants and without prosecutors present," he said.

Casanova alleged that some detentions amount to enforced disappearances under international law, with authorities denying or concealing detainees' whereabouts. He said minors have been arrested on accusations ranging from terrorism to incitement of hatred, and that many detainees are denied lawyers of their choosing. "The state imposes a public defender," he said.

He also accused authorities of mistreatment in overcrowded prisons lacking adequate food and water, and alleged that torture and coercion are used to extract confessions.

Originally published on Latin Times