Post-election crisis in Venezuela | Some 86 detained teenagers are released

(Caracas) Venezuelan authorities have released 86 teenagers, out of a total of 114 minors detained since the start of the political crisis that the country has been going through following the contested re-election of Nicolás Maduro at the end of July, the NGO Foro Penal reported on Sunday.

“From August 29 to 1^er September, the Penal Forum has [pu] check 86 releases […] of teenagers [âgés de 14 à 17 ans]detained since July 29, in the context of the post-election protests in Venezuela,” said this organization which defends “political prisoners” across the country.

The day before, Foro Penal had reported 40 precautionary releases, and two days earlier, 16 others.

Of the 86 minors, 74 are men and 12 are women. The releases took place across 14 of the country’s 24 states, including the capital district.

According to the records of the Penal Forum, 114 teenagers were arrested and accused of terrorism or treason following the protests against the re-election of Mr. Maduro denounced by the opposition as a “massive fraud” of the socialist power.

Authorities have not commented on the arrests of minors or on the releases, but have confirmed that 2,400 people have been detained.

Of this total, the Penal Forum has counted 1,581 “political prisoners” and continues to receive complaints.

“What this regime has done is unprecedented in Venezuela. Maduro kidnaps children, he has violated their rights and dignity, separating them from their families and condemning them to terror,” said Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, in a message on the social network Instagram, demanding the release of all adolescents and political prisoners.

Mr Maduro built two high-security prisons, Tocuyito and Tocoron, which were long run by criminal gangs until they were occupied by law enforcement in 2023.

Some 700 inmates were transferred to these prisons this week, according to the NGO Venezuelan Prisons Observatory.

The announcement of the re-election of Nicolás Maduro, 61, sparked spontaneous protests that left 27 dead and 192 injured, according to official sources.

Last week, Foro Penal denounced an explosion in the number of “political prisoners,” from 199 before the election to 1,780 currently, the highest number in nearly 25 years. As of July 28, there were 199.