Venezuelan authorities released at least 60 prisoners on Christmas Day who had been detained during protests following President Nicolas Maduro’s contested reelection in 2024. The move was confirmed by the Committee for the Freedom of Political Prisoners, a local human rights advocacy group.
The post-election demonstrations erupted after Maduro claimed a third term in July 2024 amid allegations of fraud. Roughly 2,400 protesters were arrested at the time, but nearly 2,000 have since been freed. Despite the latest release, at least 902 political prisoners remain in Venezuelan detention, according to human rights NGO Foro Penal.
Committee head Andreina Baduel, whose father Raul Isaias Baduel—a former ally of Hugo Chavez—died in prison in 2021, celebrated the release. “We celebrate the release of more than 60 Venezuelans, who should never have been arbitrarily detained,” she said. “Although they are not entirely free, we will continue working for their full freedom and that of all political prisoners.”
The release conditions remain unclear. AFP reached out to the Venezuelan Prosecutor’s Office for details but did not receive an immediate response. Relatives reported that the detainees had been held at Tocoron maximum-security prison in Aragua state, about 134 kilometers (83 miles) from Caracas.
Baduel urged attention to the thousands of families still affected by the ongoing imprisonment of political detainees. “We must remember that there are more than 1,000 families with political prisoners,” she said, highlighting the human cost of political repression in Venezuela.
The Christmas release is being viewed by rights groups as a modest step toward easing tensions following the controversial election, though activists insist that broader reforms are needed to secure the release of all political prisoners.
