Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez said Wednesday that her government will continue releasing prisoners detained under former President Nicolás Maduro, calling it part of a “new political moment” since his ouster by the United States earlier this month.
Rodríguez opened her first press briefing since Maduro’s arrest with a conciliatory tone, pledging that the release process “has not yet concluded.” A Venezuelan human rights group estimates around 800 political prisoners remain detained.
The 56-year-old lawyer emphasised a “Venezuela that opens itself to a new political moment, that allows for ... political and ideological diversity,” signalling a shift from Maduro-era rhetoric.
Rodríguez warned that “crimes related to the constitutional order are being evaluated” and stressed strict enforcement of the law, sending a message that messages of hatred, intolerance, and violence would not be permitted.
Venezuelan politician and journalist Roland Carreno was one of those freed on Wednesday (14 January).
So far, 72 political prisoners have been released, according to rights group Foro Penal. Acting President Delcy Rodriquez said later on Wednesday that 406 people had been released, though it was unclear what time period she was referring to or whether those included planned releases.
"Crimes related to constitutional order, hate crimes, violence and intolerance are being evaluated (for planned releases)," Rodriguez told journalists.
Crimes such as homicide and drug trafficking will be excluded from eligibility, she added.
Many of those the opposition and rights groups consider to be political prisoners are accused of crimes such as treason and acts of violence, which they deny.
Those released include Spaniards, Americans and a Peruvian, according to each country's government. The U.S. State Department celebrated the move on Tuesday, but did not confirm how many Americans were released or their identities.
The release of political prisoners in the South American country is a long-running demand of rights groups, international bodies and opposition figures, including Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, who has several close allies imprisoned.
She was joined by her brother and National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez, as well as hard-line Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, who she said is coordinating the prisoner releases. Critics have said the process is slow and secretive.
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U.S. passenger air services to Venezuela resumed on Thursday (30 April), as an American Airlines flight landed in Caracas, restoring a commercial link between the two countries after seven years.
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Three months following the U.S. raid that captured socialist President Nicolas Maduro on 3 January, the Venezuelan National Assembly approved a new law on Thursday loosening the state’s grip on mining investments to open the sector for private and foreign companies.
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