VENEZUELA: JOURNALIST REPORTING ON COVID-19 JAILED

Additional information                                                        

The arbitrary detention, criminalization and unfair conviction of Darvinson Rojas occurs in a context of widespread arbitrary detentions made against people critical of the government or claiming their human rights.

Venezuelan authorities have implemented a systematic and widespread policy of repression, including carrying out politically motivated arbitrary detentions, targeted extrajudicial executions, and using military courts to charge non-military with discretionary crimes such as treason or rebellion, towards those who are seen as critical of the government. Human rights defenders and individuals who seek justice for human rights violations have been subjected to targeted attacks and smear campaigns, in an apparent attempt to stifle their human rights work.

The FAES have a particularly dismal human rights record, particularly regarding extrajudicial executions. In January 2019, those targeted were all young men who were or were perceived to be critical of the government and came from low-income areas and their participation in protests had been visible or publicized.

Additionally, the authorities continue refusing to recognize the true scale of the humanitarian emergency and deteriorating living conditions. The population in Venezuela faces severe shortages of food, medicines, medical supplies, water and electricity. By the end of 2019, the total number of people who had fled the country in search of international protection had reached 4.8 million.

In the case of Darvinson Rojas, his reporting on the spread of COVID-19 in Venezuela put him at risk of being victim of the government’s policy of repression, given the firm grip authorities under Nicolás Maduro have over information on public health matters and the government’s inadequate response to it.

Darvinson was at his home in Mamera, Caracas, with his parents when a group of FAES officers arrived at his home and asked to talk to him, initially with the excuse of an alleged “COVID-19 case”, and later asking him to reveal his sources on the information he was making public regarding cases of people infected with the virus in Venezuela. The FAES arrested his parents with him, and took them to the same detention centre, where they were able to hear that FAES officers were pushing Darvinson to release information on who his source was on the matter, which also contravenes the principle of source secrecy protected by international law. After his parents were released, he was taken to another detention centre, and after hours of uncertainty his family was able to see him and talk to him on 22 March.

At the time this urgent action was issued, Darvinson had not been brought to a court to establish the charges and grounds of his detention, and his lawyer believes this is not going to happen within the legal deadline of 48 hours after his detention.

Preferred language to address target: Spanish

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Please take action as soon as possible until: 4 May 2020

Please check with the Amnesty office in your country if you wish to send appeals after the deadline.

Name and preffered pronoun: Nicolás Maduro (he/him/his) LINK to previous UA: n/a