The office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (Acnudh) will be present in Venezuela for two more years, the official in charge of this body, Volker Türk, announced this Saturday (01/28/2023) during the press conference he offered at the end of his official mission in Caracas.
“I am heartened by the government’s decision to extend the team’s presence in Venezuela for another two years so that they can continue their work to advance the human rights agenda in the country,” said Türk, from Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía, concluding the visit.
Türk explained that over the past two days he has met with more than 125 members of civil society, human rights defenders, victims of violations of these guarantees, representatives of the Catholic Church and senior government officials, and that among his impressions the most important is that of a “fragmented State” of a society that faces challenges in the sense of DD.HH.
fragmented society
Among his assessments, he highlighted “the fragmented and divided state of Venezuelan society and the betrayal of trust (…) and the urgent need and desire (…) to build bridges and try to bridge these gaps,” a desire that – he assured – expressed many of the people he spoke to.
He also said he encouraged the Venezuelan authorities to “take significant steps to reform the judicial sector” and “put an end to torture once and for all”.
“I was promised that the torture complaints would be processed (…), that they would be investigated and that those responsible would be prosecuted,” the official said.
The high commissioner assured that “he is committed to Venezuela” and said that all sectors of the Caribbean country have the support of his office.
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