The UN rights chief warns of a deepening repression in Venezuela and a rising toll in Ukraine
Presenting verbal updates to the Geneva-based Council for Human RightsHigh Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said the situation in Venezuela has not improved since his last briefing in June.
“The crackdown on social space has intensified, stifling people’s freedoms,” Mr Türk said. saidpointing to arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances, in addition to increasing social and economic problems.
He said recently passed legislation gave the government the ability to expand emergency powers based on perceived external threats, but noted that the text has still not been published – shielding authorities from scrutiny.
Increasing militarization
Public life, Mr Türk warned, is becoming increasingly militarized, increasing the risk of violence in a society struggling with high levels of crime.
His office, OHCHRhas received reports of forced participation in the Bolivarian Militia, including of adolescents and the elderly, as well as reports that authorities are encouraging citizens to report on relatives and neighbors through a state-sponsored mobile app.
“Such policies breed fear, distrust and self-censorship,” he said.
Journalists, human rights defenders, opposition figures and humanitarian workers continue to face threats, intimidation and the risk of arbitrary detention, Mr Türk added, driving many into exile.
“When human rights defenders and journalists leave, the truth and responsibility go with them,” he warned.
Detained for exercising civil rights
The High Commissioner expressed serious concerns about detention conditions, citing persistent shortages of food and medicine and the denial of family visits, which are impacting the physical and mental health of detainees – with fatal consequences in some cases.
Noting the release of at least 51 detainees since June, he called for the unconditional release of all those arbitrarily detained simply for exercising their civil rights, and an end to enforced disappearances and incommunicado detention.
He warned that attempts to strip opposition figures of their nationality violate international law.
Ukraine: Silence the guns now
On Ukraine, the High Commissioner said that nearly four years after Russia’s large-scale invasion, civilians are experiencing increasing harm, with a 24 percent increase in casualties compared to last year, largely due to Moscow’s extensive missile and drone attacks.
“No part of the country is safe,” he says saidciting nationwide strikes on energy infrastructure that have left millions without power, heat and water as winter approaches.
Mr Türk condemned extrajudicial killings, torture and sexual violence against prisoners of war and urged both Russia and Ukraine to uphold international law, stressing that accountability remains essential.
“They need the silencing of the weapons,” he underlined.
