The Venezuelan NGO Justicia, Encuentro y Perdón (JEP) reported this Monday that it confirmed 53 releases of political prisoners, after the Ministry of the Penitentiary Service of the country announced earlier the release of 116 people.
“We deeply celebrate each reunion in freedom, as well as the joy of the released individuals and their families, with the hope that these embraces will continue to multiply,” JEP indicated in a message on X.
The NGO indicated that these are the releases that it has been able to confirm until 8:20 local time (12:20 GMT) this Monday, after the government reported more than 100 releases, without publishing a list with names.
You can also read: Today marks the 16th anniversary of the earthquake that marked the history of Haiti
The majority opposition has spoken of 24 releases, while the NGO Foro Penal reports more than 40.
In another post on X, JEP considered that “it is fundamental” that in this process some profiles are considered “a priority” which, he affirmed, “deserve urgent attention and with a humanitarian approach”.
In this regard, it was pointed out that “adolescents, people within the autism spectrum, women, the seriously ill, and the elderly, who should be recognized as especially vulnerable groups.”
He also recalled that the number of released political prisoners “continues to be much lower” than the number of cases documented by the organization, which counted 1,011 cases as of last Thursday.
“This gap reinforces the need for greater transparency, independent verification, and for releases to be fully and effectively implemented without arbitrary exclusions,” he added.
In the past, the JEP has also reported that in the rounds of releases announced by the Government, people who were “detained for non-political reasons” are sometimes included.
The Ministry of Penitentiary Service announced this Monday, in a statement, about 116 “new releases” in the last hours of people it linked to “events associated with altering the constitutional order and attacking the stability of the nation”.
This announcement comes days after the head of Parliament and brother of the acting president, Jorge Rodríguez, announced last Thursday the release of a “significant number” of people.
So far, the Government has not made public the total number, the names, or the conditions of the releases.
Since last Thursday, when the releases were announced, relatives of political prisoners have spent the night in several penitentiary centers, such as El Rodeo I, awaiting the release of their loved ones.
