VENEZUELA: ARBITRARY DETENTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER JOSÉ JAVIER TARAZONA SÁNCHEZ

The International League Against Arbitrary Detention urges the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to take all the necessary actions to implement the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Opinion No. 8/2025 concerning José Javier Tarazona Sánchez, asking the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to immediately and unconditionally release José Javier Tarazona Sánchez and to accord him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations in accordance with international law.

Read the full WGAD Opinion concerning José Javier Tarazona Sánchez (Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela): Opinion No. 8/2025.

ARREST AND UNLIMITED DETENTION OF A HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER

Mr. Tarazona Sánchez, a citizen of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela born on 21 July 1982, is a human rights defender and, at the time of the arrest, the president of the NGO FundaRedes. Since 2020, Mr. Tarazona Sánchez has been granted precautionary measures by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights due to continuous attacks and threats he has received after denouncing, through FundaRedes, the links between certain irregular armed groups and the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

On 2 July 2021, Mr. Tarazona Sánchez, together with several members of FundaRedes, was arrested by State authorities in the city of Coro, Falcón State. The arrest occurred while they were present at the Office of the Public Prosecutor to report alleged incidents of harassment and intimidation perpetrated by State security forces. After their arrest, Mr. Tarazona Sánchez and his colleagues were transferred to Caracas, to the headquarters of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service. He was denied access to his lawyers and his family for a total of 101 days and 60 days, respectively. His trial was postponed several times and is still ongoing. Mr. Tarazona Sánchez remains in detention.

The Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela responded to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention transmission on 23 October 2024, denying allegations of arbitrary detention.

ARRESTED WITHOUT A WARRANT AND SUBJECTED TO EXTENDED AND UNLAWFUL PRE-TRIAL DETENTION

The source alleged that on 2 July 2021, Mr. Tarazona Sánchez, along with other FundaRedes activists, were arrested by the Special Action Forces without presenting a warrant or informing them of the reasons for their arrest handcuffed them. The Government, in its response, claimed that an arrest warrant was issued against Mr. Tarazona Sánchez and that he had been duly notified of the charges against him. However, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention noted that the Government failed to provide details of the warrant having been presented to Mr. Tarazona Sánchez. Therefore, the Working Group found that this situation violated article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 9 of the Covenant as no arrest warrant was shown to the applicant.

Additionally, the source mentioned that his trial was postponed multiple times while Mr. Tarazona Sánchez remains detained without convictions. The Government justified the preventive detention of Mr. Tarazona Sánchez by asserting that his release would create a risk of flight and obstruction of the investigation. The Working Group found that the Government did not provide what circumstances specifically relevant to Mr. Tarazona Sánchez justify his preventive detention since his arrest in July 2021 to date, and recalled that, in accordance with article 9, paragraph 3, of the Covenant, pretrial detention should be the exception rather than the rule, and should be ordered for the shortest possible period of time. Thus, his continued pretrial detention, repeatedly extended without individualised reasoning or consideration of alternatives, contravened article 9 (3) of the Covenant.

Considering all the above, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that Mr. Tarazona Sánchez’s arrest was unlawful and that he was subjected to pre-trial detention without an individualized determination, rendering his deprivation of liberty arbitrary under category I.

DETAINED FOR EXERCISING RIGHTS TO FREEDOM OF OPINION AND EXPRESSION AND PEACEFUL ASSEMBLY AND ASSOCIATION AND PARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Mr. Tarazona Sánchez’s arrest and detention reportedly followed his role as the director of FundaRedes in denouncing the links between certain irregular armed groups and the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. According to the Government, Mr. Tarazona Sánchez, through his social media and the FundaRedes website, had posted content that amounted to defamatory discourse and insults toward the authorities, allegedly aimed at disturbing public order and promoting or inciting hatred. The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that his deprivation of liberty directly resulted from the exercise of his work of human rights defenders and amounted to a violation of his rights to equality before the law and equal protection of the law, his rights to freedom of opinion, expression and association, and his right to participate in political affairs as protected by articles 7, 19, 20 and 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 19, 22, 25 and 26 of the Covenant.

Therefore, it concluded that Mr. Tarazona Sánchez’s detention was arbitrary under category II.

SUBJECTED TO ACTS OF TORTURE AND DENIED HIS RIGHT TO A LAWYER

The source alleged that the Court and the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service blocked Mr. Tarazona Sánchez from appointing lawyers of his choice for several days. It was further reported that his defence team was subjected to acts of intimidation, restrictions during court proceedings, and undue control of the courtroom audience. The Working Group found that Mr. Tarazona Sánchez’s legal representatives have been consistently impeded from exercising their professional duties, thereby depriving him of a fair and impartial trial. These interferences constituted a violation of the principle of equality of arms and effectively prevented him from enjoying his right to adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his defence, in contravention of articles 10 and 11 (1), of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 14 (3) (b) of the Covenant.

Furthermore, the source stated that Mr. Tarazona Sánchez was violently apprehended, subjected to physical and psychological torture. His physical and mental health reportedly deteriorated as a result, and despite seven judicial orders authorising his medical transfer, such orders had not been executed. The Government denied these allegations, asserting that the torture complaint was first lodged in December 2022 and that the Court later authorised medical transfers. However, the Working Group determined that the Government failed to provide a specific and verifiable response that could refute the allegations of the source. Therefore, the Working Group found a violation of article 11 (1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 14 (3) (g) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as torture and ill-treatment are circumstances that constitute a violation of the right to a fair trial.

The source also indicated that the criminal proceedings against Mr. Tarazona Sánchez have been repeatedly delayed, and the trial and preliminary hearings have been subject to unwarranted postponements and adjournments. The Government stated that these delays were due to the alleged complexity of the evidentiary record before the court. However, the Working Group observed that no tangible efforts had been demonstrated by the authorities to expedite the proceedings or ensure their timely conclusion. Therefore, the Working Group concluded that Mr. Tarazona Sánchez’s right to be tried within a reasonable time and without undue delay, as enshrined in articles 9 (3) and 14 (3) (c) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, had been violated.

The Working Group concluded that Mr. Tarazona Sánchez’s detention violated fair trial rights and was arbitrary under category III.

DISCRIMINATORY TREATMENT BASED ON HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS’ ACTIVITIES

Mr. Tarazona Sánchez’s detention occurred in the context of his role as the director of the NGO FundaRedes. The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention determined that his deprivation of liberty was based on discriminatory grounds, particularly due to his role as a human rights defender and the political or other opinions he expressed in holding the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela accountable. Therefore, his deprivation of liberty constituted a violation of articles 2 and 7 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 2 (1) and 26 of the Covenant.

The Working Group, therefore, concluded that Mr. Tarazona Sánchez’s detention was arbitrary under category V.

CONCLUSIONS OF THE UN WORKING GROUP AGAINST ARBITRARY DETENTION

In light of the foregoing, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention considered that the detention of Mr. Tarazona Sánchez was arbitrary and fell under categories I, II, III and V because the deprivation of liberty of Mr. Tarazona Sánchez was in contravention of articles 2, 3, 7, 9, 10, 11, 19, 20 and 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 2, 9, 10, 14, 19, 21, 22, 25 and 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The Working Group recommended that the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela take the steps necessary to remedy the situation of Mr. Tarazona Sánchez without delay and bring it into conformity with the relevant international norms. The Working group considered that, taking into account all circumstances of the case, the appropriate solution would be to immediately release him and grant him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law.