Humanists International has raised alarm over the escalating repression of civil society and political activists in Venezuela. Leon Langdon, the organization’s Advocacy Officer, delivered a statement during the Interactive Dialogue with the International Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela at the 57th Session of the UN Human Rights Council. His statement criticized the Venezuelan government’s increasingly harsh tactics, including the harassment, criminalization, and arrest of activists and human rights defenders.
The Fact-Finding Mission’s report documented a severe crackdown on civilian protestors following the contested elections, revealing that police and military forces have played a key role in suppressing demonstrations. This suppression is part of what the Mission has termed the “repressive apparatus” of the Venezuelan state, which has been activated to silence opposition. The election results, widely regarded as fraudulent, have been condemned by several international organizations, including the Organization of American States (OAS), while the opposition leader has been forced into exile.
The statement also called attention to the documentation of the use of sexual violence as a method of repression and torture in Venezuela. Given all of the outlined abuses, Humanists International also called for a renewal of the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission.
This statement followed a Resolution of the Humanists International General Assembly, passed at the beginning of September 2024. The Resolution was passed on an emergency basis due to the recent elections in the country, and the subsequent violence, and expressed concern about the human rights abuses reported in the country.
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