ISHR and Cepaz delivered a statement during the Interactive Dialogue with the Fact Finding Mission on Venezuela at the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council calling for guarantees of justice, truth and the restoration of rights.
On 13 March 2026, Beatriz Borges delivered a joint statement for Cepaz and ISHR during the Interactive Dialogue with the Fact Finding Mission on Venezuela.
Read the full statement below:
Mister President,
Following years of serious and systematic human rights violations in Venezuela, any initiative presented as a step towards reconciliation must be assessed with due caution.
The recent amnesty law and certain institutional changes have been presented as signs of progress. However, in the absence of verifiable guarantees of justice, truth and the restoration of rights, there is a real risk that these measures will end up being used to project an image of openness whilst the structures of persecution and impunity persist.
Today, there are still families affected who are seeking justice, mostly women, mothers, sisters and wives. They have been the most constant face of this struggle and continue to demand not only the release of political prisoners, but also guarantees of non-repetition.
Civil society organisations and human rights defenders continue to face restrictions on the right of association and risks due to their work.
Mister President, if the aim is to pave the way towards a sustainable solution, these must be translated into concrete actions. These include the establishment of real guarantees for truth, accountability and the participation of victims and civil society in any process of institutional reform.
Without justice and truth, there will be no lasting reconciliation.
And without a free and protected civil society, it will not be possible to build a democratic transition based on rights.
Thank you very much.
On 5 January 2026, ISHR and other organisations condemned the United States military attack against Venezuela. On 20 January, together with 16 other national and international human rights organisations, we put forward a ten-point list of priority demands.
In 2019, the Human Rights Council established the The Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) on Venezuela to assess alleged human rights violations committed in the country since 2014. The mechanism is the only independent United Nations monitoring body with the mandate to investigate systematic violations and abuses of human rights and ensure accountability for perpetrators in Venezuela. Its mandate is due to be renewed at the 63rd session of the Human Rights Council in September 2026.
Extending the mandate of the mission is vital to continuing the investigation and documentation of the violations and abuses committed in Venezuela and to putting an end to impunity. Justice and truth are essential to build a democratic transition.
ISHR calls on HRC members and observers to support the renewal of the Fact-Finding Mission mandate.
Following the report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders to the Human Rights Council, ISHR commended her work, denounced human rights violations and encouraged the next mandate-holder to continue the effective work of protecting defenders worldwide in collaboration with regional mechanisms.
The Human Rights Council President has proposed that States select Bolaños Vargas as the Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders by the end of the body’s ongoing 61st session.
In a stark setback for civil society at the UN, members of the Committee on NGOs moved to strip two organisations of their consultative status, with several more NGOs likely to face similar action in upcoming sessions.
