Venezuela: What was the State's responsibility in these human rights violations?

The UN has just presented a devastating report. The United Nations Independent International Mission on Venezuela presented strong evidence of the systematic plan to persecute, imprison and torture opponents. It clearly shows those who remain silent in the face of the brutality of the Chavista regime.

The UN has just issued a complete report. What are the political parties that support this dictatorship going to do now, the states that give their total trust to this government, the organizations that defended this horror? In recent decades has there been democracy in Venezuela? 

The United Nations Independent International Mission on Venezuela documented 122 cases of victims who were "subjected to torture, sexual violence and/or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment", which were perpetrated by the forces of the Chavista dictatorship from 2014 to the present.

In this report, the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (MIIV), details the roles and contributions of various individuals at different levels of the chains of command of these agencies, and urges the authorities to investigate their responsibilities and judge them accordingly.

The report details that they are orders from Maduro.

The report also cites Diosdado Cabello, a powerful Chavista leader, as the author of orders to identify some of those detained by the Sebin.

It also clarifies that in some cases, Maduro and people from his close circle, as well as other high-level authorities, "participated in the selection of the objectives", it has been verified that the government authorities detained dissidents and opponents of the regime.

"Both the Sebin and the DGCIM used sexual and gender-based violence to torture and humiliate their detainees," he adds.

Witnesses who spoke with the Mission stated that since Hernández Dala heads the DGCIM, he has progressively reported more directly to Maduro than to the Ministry of Defense. Hernández Dala has been the target of various international sanctions for human rights violations.

The document mentions Iván Rafael Hernández Dala, who has served as General Director of the DGCIM since 2014.

Sixty-two cases were documented in which high-level government officials announced deaths and mass arrests as part of the “results” of operations, sometimes while the operation was still ongoing or within hours of its conclusion.

"This indicates that both the communications systems were working and that the security forces on the ground reported the killings and arrests to the Home Secretary," the report concludes.

According to the report, the Mission determined that it “has reasonable grounds to believe that military commanders and political superiors: 1) knew that killings and arrests were taking place during the operations and 2) knew or accepted the high probability that these acts occurred outside the framework of the law.

The document presented by the UN had 22 votes in favor, 22 abstentions and 3 against. With the approval, the mandate of the UN Human Rights Council was renewed for 2 years to continue investigating what is happening in Venezuela.