© ISHR
Human rights defender's story: Óscar Calles, from Venezuela
‘Human rights organisations, activists and defenders only exist to ensure that all persons can live with dignity,' says Oscar Calles. 'Do not turn your backs on the hundreds of victims who are still awaiting justice to this day,’ he further urges States at the UN Human Rights Council, calling on to renew a key accountability mechanism for Venezuela.
Óscar Calles is a journalist and human rights defender from Venezuela. Since 2019, he has been working for PROVEA, one of the country’s most prominent rights groups.
In an interview with ISHR, he recalled his experience of witnessing and broadcasting mass protests in his country in 2017, and how harshly these were repressed. This, he said, led him to take direct action in the defence of human rights and civil liberties.
Óscar also called on States at the UN Human Rights Council to renew the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission for Venezuela (FFM), an independent investigative body set up by the Council to document and preserve evidence of grave human rights violations in the country.
Together with him and other Venezuelan and international partners, ISHR is campaigning for States to support the renewal of the FFM’s mandate and to maintain this key tool for human rights accountability. Learn more about our campaign here.
In June 2024, Óscar was also one of 16 defenders who participated in ISHR’s Human Rights Defender Advocacy Programme (HRDAP). Here’s what he thought of the training programme: