Seventy-one 'arbitrary detentions' have been reported in Venezuela within days of the start of campaigning for the presidential election, according to a human rights NGO. A report by Laboratorio de Paz revealed that 48 of those detentions involved individuals who had provided services to the campaign command of opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia of the Democratic Unitary Platform. The arrests occurred between July 4 and 14, with most taking place in the state of Táchira. The NGO also documented 26 cases of harassment, 11 obstructions to free movement, two closures of premises, and three raids.
The NGO highlighted that these figures are part of a 'recurring pattern' of Venezuelans being targeted for political reasons at the national level. Concerns were raised that such actions would escalate as the election approached. Critics of President Nicolas Maduro's government have accused it of rigging votes and suppressing the opposition. The 2018 election that saw Maduro return to office was deemed illegitimate by an alliance of 14 Latin American nations, Canada, and the United States.
Two opposition candidates, Maria Corina Machado and Corina Yoris, have been disqualified from running despite Maduro's commitment to holding free and fair elections in exchange for sanctions relief. Following the release of Laboratorio's report, Machado revealed that her security chief had been arrested. Machado claimed that her security chief, Milciades Ávila, was detained by the Maduro regime on allegations of gender violence against some women.
Machado stated that the women who accused Ávila of gender violence attempted to 'attack' her and opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia in a restaurant. She asserted that the incident was a planned provocation to leave them without protection just 11 days before July 28. The Attorney General's Office in Venezuela was contacted for comment on Ávila's arrest and to ascertain whether he has legal representation.
The upcoming election is scheduled for July 28, with ten candidates vying for the presidency, including incumbent Maduro seeking re-election for another six-year term after 11 years in power. Maduro's primary challenger is González Urrutia, who represents an alliance of major opposition parties and leaders in Venezuela. The legal adviser to the opposition campaign, Perkins Rocha, disclosed that at least 11 individuals associated with the campaign command were arrested over the weekend.
