Carlos Correa. Image from Espacio Público under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Global Voices Advox, Espacio Público, and the undersigned organizations demand the immediate release of Carlos Correa, director of the Venezuelan NGO Espacio Público.
On January 7, around 5:00 p.m. in downtown Caracas, Correa was intercepted by individuals dressed in black, hooded, and taken to an unknown location. This tactic has previously been used by Venezuela's state security forces to arbitrarily detain and forcibly disappear human rights defenders, political figures and government critics under Nicolás Maduro's administration.
Correa, a journalist, has over 20 years’ experience promoting and defending human rights and freedom of expression in Venezuela. He also serves as a professor-researcher at the Human Rights Center of the Andrés Bello Catholic University. Since Correa's capture, neither his family nor his lawyers have been able to contact him, in violating both a fundamental human right and the due process guarantees established in the Organic Criminal Procedure Code.
Read more on Global Voices: Where is Carlos Correa? Unidentified men take Venezuelan activist away from the middle of Caracas
Family members and colleagues have searched several detention centers for Correa, but authorities deny his presence. Denying such information perpetuates the crime of enforced disappearance, with officials legally complicit.
Correa's arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance are part of the escalating harassment and persecution of civil and political liberties defenders by the Venezuelan state. On August 15, a law regulating NGOs and non-profit social organizations was passed, violating autonomy and independence in association rights. The law labels these organizations as “enemies of the homeland” which allegedly use “illicit funds” to “finance terrorism.”
Nicolás Maduro recently referenced Correa in a national broadcast, recalling his work with the radio network Fe y Alegría. Additionally, Correa and Espacio Público have been targeted for their advocacy for freedom of expression by Diosdado Cabello, Venezuela's Minister of Interior, Justice and Peace, in Cabello's television program.
Family members report that Correa suffers from health conditions that require immediate treatment, and that the state is responsible for ensuring his access to the necessary medical interventions. Moreover, state and public officials are accountable for safeguarding his psychological and physical well-being and that of all arbitrarily detained and disappeared individuals.
