AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL REPORT 2016/17

economic, social and cultural rights, in
particular access to food, health and housing.
HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS
Human rights defenders continued to be
targeted with attacks and intimidation by
state media and high-ranking government
officials.
In April, Humberto Prado Sifontes, director
of the Venezuelan Prisons Observatory (OVP),
was once again the victim of threats and
insults when his email and social media
accounts were hacked following the
publication of an interview where he reported
on crisis and violence in the prison system. 2
In May, Rigoberto Lobo Puentes, a
member of the Human Rights Observatory of
the University of The Andes, was shot in the
head and back with a pellet gun by police
officers in Merida State, when tending to
injured victims during a protest. The officers
continued to shoot at him after he got into
his car.
In June, lawyers Raquel Sánchez and
Oscar Alfredo Ríos, members of the NGO
Venezuelan Penal Forum, were attacked by a
group of hooded assailants who smashed the
windscreen and side mirrors of their car
when they were travelling through Tachira
State. Raquel Sánchez was severely wounded
when she was hit on the head as she got out
of the car. 3
PRISON CONDITIONS
Prisons remained seriously overcrowded, and
despite the announcement concerning new
detention centres, prisoners’ living conditions
– including their access to food and health –
worsened. The presence of weapons held by
prisoners remained a problem which the
authorities failed to control. According to the
OVP, the number of prisoners exceeded
prison capacity by 190% in the first half of
the year. Local NGOs also denounced the
critical situation in pre-trial detention
facilities.
In March, 57 people – including four
inmates, a custodian and the prison director
– were injured at the Fenix Penitentiary
Centre in Lara State.
In August, seven people were killed and
several others wounded by grenades during a
riot at the Aragua Penitentiary Centre.
In October, several inmates were evicted
from the General Penitentiary of Venezuela
after weeks of confrontation with the
Bolivarian National Guard, who allegedly
used excessive force in the confrontation.
The Office of the Ombudsman announced
a proposal to reduce overcrowding in pre-trial
detention facilities. According to its annual
report, presented to Parliament, 22,759
people remained in pre-trial detention in
police facilities, resulting in overcrowding and
the spread of diseases and violence.
ARBITRARY ARRESTS AND DETENTIONS
Lawyer Marcelo Crovato remained under
house arrest at the end of the year. He had
been detained without trial in April 2014 for
defending residents whose houses had been
raided by the authorities during protests, and
was placed under house arrest in 2015.
Decisions of the UN Working Group on
Arbitrary Detention had yet to be complied
with by the end of the year. They included
decisions on the cases of Daniel Ceballos and
Antonio Ledezma, two prominent government
critics.
In June, Francisco Márquez and Gabriel
San Miguel, two activists supporting the
opposition party Popular Will, were arrested
while on their way from the capital, Caracas,
to Portuguesa State to help organize electoral
activities. In August, Gabriel San Miguel was
freed following action taken by the Spanish
government, while Francisco Márquez was
freed in October.
Emilio Baduel Cafarelli and Alexander
Tirado Lara were transferred on three
occasions to detention centres known as
dangerous, prompting concern for their lives
and physical integrity. They had been
convicted of incitement, intimidation using
explosives and conspiracy to commit a crime
during the 2014 protests.
Opposition members Coromoto Rodríguez,
Yon Goicoechea, Alejandro Puglia and José
Vicente García were arrested in May, August,
September and October respectively, under
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