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Over 125 Venezuelean and international organisations expressed their concern about the continuing human rights violations in Venezuela and called on the UN Human Rights Council to renew the Fact Finding Mission (FFM) on Venezuela at its upcoming September session.
During a press conference, a coalition of national and international organisations that includes ISHR, Provea, Cepaz, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International pointed out that the pattern of arbitrary detentions, illegal inspections, forced disappearances, closure of civic space and lack of judicial independence for the investigation of crimes continues in Venezuela. For this reason, the group said, the continued work of the Fact-Finding Mission is fundamental for the process of accountability and in order to provide truth to victims.
The organisations highlighted the findings of the Mission of Experts, created by resolution 42/25 in 2019, which presented its first report in 2020. The Mission’s main results include monitoring of and progress in the investigations of a high number of cases of human rights violations and findings on crimes that can be linked to national officials. The Mission has also determined what some of the obstacles are in access to justice and the extent to which impunity remains in the country.
In order to ensure guarantees for an efficient investigation and access to justice for the victims, the Mission must continue its work.Elvira Pernalete, mother of one of the victims of abuse who participated in the press conference
In addition, the organisations published a press statement and said that, with the renewal of the FFM’s mandate, they will seek to follow up and implement the recommendations that are still pending, including reforming the judicial system and guaranteeing access to impartial justice.
“The failure of the Venezuelan authorities to implement the Mission’s recommendations and the structural conditions that prompted the creation of the Mission remain, including impunity, lack of domestic avenues for redress for victims of abuses, and the government’s continued attempts to evade international scrutiny”, the groups said in the statement.
Moreover, the organisations highlighted the links between the Fact-Finding Mission and other UN mechanisms as well as the FFM’s complementarity with the office of the High Commissioner and with other international instruments.
The groups’ joint statement also urged governments, especially in Latin America, to take the lead in the efforts to renew the Mission’s mandate. “Latin American governments should again lead this initiative to promote accountability measures and ongoing monitoring efforts, in addition to urging all UN Member States to renew the mandate”, the statement read.
ISHR supports this joint statement and calls on States to ensure that, at its next session in September, the Human Rights Council renews the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission.
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