Strict respect for due process and the correction of structural failures that allow impunity in Venezuela were the central demands that several NGOs made to the Attorney General, Larry Devoe, during a meeting held this Tuesday.
Oscar Murillogeneral coordinator of Provideindicated that at the meeting human rights defenders focused their requests on the cessation of arbitrariness and the recovery of constitutional legality.
Murillo reaffirmed that “due process is the only means to ensure the realization of human rights in the current political situation.” He said that at the meeting the NGOs presented and recorded a list of essential proposals to guide the actions of the Public Ministry under a focus on human dignity.
Immediate demands for the judicial system
For the organizations, the institutional reconstruction of the country requires urgent steps that put an end to arbitrariness. Murillo emphasized three critical points:
- Access to justice: The courts must receive, without delay, any request for Habeas corpus.
- Right to defense: The State must guarantee that every detained person appoints his or her trusted lawyer immediately.
- Stop abuse: It is imperative to cut the chain of irregularities that characterizes the current judicial environment.
“The only path for the sustainable development of Venezuela requires that the people be listened to with the focus on the Constitution,” Murillo stated after the meeting.
Dialogue and institutional opening
For his part, the prosecutor Larry Devoe described the meeting as the beginning of channels of “direct communication” with NGOs. In addition to Provea, representatives from Civilis, SurGentes and Cecodapwho received the invitation to participate in the National Consultation on the Criminal Justice System.
Complaints about teenagers and arrests
The day also included the intervention of Carlos Trapanicoordinator of Cecodapwho denounced the inappropriate use of the crime of terrorism in adolescents. Trapani warned about arrests without a court order and the limitation of contact between those arrested and their families.
This approach occurs in a context of strong international surveillance over the management of Devoe, appointed on April 9, and after his recent commitment to the International Committee of the Red Cross to strengthen care for the prison population.
