The International League Against Arbitrary Detention (ILAAD), alongside JusticiaXLibertad and Venezuelan human rights lawyer Eduardo Torres, have submitted an urgent action request to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD).
ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCE OF 34 INDIVIDUALS ACCUSED OF PLOTTING TO KILL THE PRESIDENT
This action concerns the recent arbitrary detention of 19 foreign nationals and 15 Venezuelan citizens in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, accused of plotting to kill President Nicolás Maduro.
On 17 October 2024, Venezuela’s Minister of Interior, Justice and Peace, Mr Diosdado Cabello, announced the detentions in a televised press conference, alleging the individuals were “mercenaries” involved in a CIA and Spanish National Intelligence Center plan to destabilize Venezuela.
Despite this public statement, authorities have not disclosed the detainees’ whereabouts, effectively subjecting them to incommunicado detention—a practice the WGAD has linked to a high risk of torture and ill-treatment.
The detainees were arrested in several operations in September and have been held in secret locations and interrogated without legal representation or family contact. Mr. Cabello said the detainees “confessed” to plans of violence which raises serious concerns about potential forced confessions.
ILAAD notes that this is a violation of the detainees’ basic human rights, including freedom from arbitrary detention, torture and enforced disappearance, and recalls that using foreign detainees as leverage in state-to-state relations is a blatant violation of internationa law.
URGENT ACTION REQUESTED TO THE UN WORKING GROUP AGAINST ARBITRARY DETENTION
The urgent action request appeals for the WGAD to urge Venezuela to take the appropriate measures to immediately disclose the location of the detainees and ensure proper legal process, consular access, and independent verification of their safety and well-being, in accordance with Venezuela’s international human rights obligations.
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