The non-governmental organization Public Space reported that in Venezuela at least 170 have been registered violations of freedom of expression between January and August of this year.
According to the NGO’s monthly newsletter, In August, three new cases and six additional violations were added. They also specified that so far this year there have been at least 107 violations of the right to inform.
The five victims identified by Espacio Público during August were journalists or reporters, and the only perpetrator fully identified in the month was the security forces controlled by the government of Delcy Rodríguez, although “two other perpetrators that the victims were unable to recognize” were recorded.
Although August showed the lowest number of cases of the year, the NGO warned that this does not reflect an improvement in the conditions for practicing journalism. “It is the lowest record of the year; however, the figure does not describe a month of fewer restrictions, but rather a month in which a good part of what limited the right to inform was not expressed in individual denounceable facts, but in institutional decisions, opacity and agreements adopted without public information,” stated the NGO.
Censorship
The first case of the month occurred on August 6 in La Carlota, in Caracas, when a journalist from the Impact Cocuyo media was covering the installation of the dialogue table between members of the 2015 National Assembly and the interim government.
It was reported that unidentified officials cornered her, threatened her, and forced her to delete all the audiovisual material she had recorded. Days later, on August 13, El Nacional reported that Instagram had suspended its account since July 26 due to fraudulent claims of copyright infringement.leaving more than four million users without that channel.
For Espacio Público, this episode is not an isolated event. “The case repeats the pattern that already affected Armando.Info and El Pitazo: a legitimate rights protection mechanism converted into a censorship tool. It also occurs in a scenario in which more than 60 digital media continue to be blocked by Conatel by administrative means, without a judicial decision or the possibility of appeal,” added the NGO.
The organization also reiterated that the Rodríguez government maintains a position of opacity by not publishing information on the impact of the earthquakes that occurred in June or on the plans to restore the electrical system, a point that has been mentioned as part of the reparation mechanisms towards democracy.
Added to this is a finding disclosed by Espacio Público on August 17: 70% of health personnel admit fear of reporting the situation due to intimidation. 60% of hospitals deny access to independent media under “superior orders” executed by security forces and militias, while 90% keep emergency purchases and budget allocations under wraps.
At the close of the year’s accumulated balance, Espacio Público detailed the weight of each type of violation and the profile of victims and perpetrators.
“So far in 2026 we have accumulated 170 violations, with intimidation (47.65%) and censorship (25.29%) in first and second place in frequency. Of the 122 victims, 70 are journalists or reporters (57.38%), and among the 104 perpetrators the security forces account for almost half (50.48.08%), followed by State institutions (20.19.23%)”, the organization reported.
