The “brazen” military actions taken by the Trump administration threaten to trigger a fresh human rights crisis for the people of Venezuela, according to the Human Rights Watch organization.
Following the January 3, US military operations against Venezuela and detention of the country’s leader, Nicolás Maduro, along with his wife, Cilia Flores, both have been brought before a US federal court on charges related to drug trafficking and other criminal allegations.
In a written statement, Juanita Goebertus, Human Rights Watch’s director for the Americas, asserted, “Venezuelans are entitled to freely choose their own leaders and decide their nation’s future. However, the US appears poised to actively encourage Venezuela to maintain Maduro’s repressive apparatus as long as it furthers US political and business interests.”
On January 3, President Donald Trump announced that the United States would “run” Venezuela for the foreseeable future, though he did not clarify what that entails.
US officials have signaled plans to collaborate with Delcy Rodríguez, who previously served as Maduro’s vice president and was sworn in as interim president on January 5.
According to HRW, US authorities have indicated they will leverage their capacity to tighten or ease an oil blockade in the Caribbean, alongside threats of additional military strikes, to pressure the Venezuelan government into aligning with US demands. These include facilitating American oil investments and tackling gang-related violence, among other objectives.
The organization also reports that the strikes conducted on January 3 targeted military installations, resulting in the deaths of dozens of military personnel and at least two civilians. The Cuban government, which has historically supported Venezuela’s regime, issued strong condemnation for the actions, and HRW states that the government also claimed that 32 Cuban officers were among those killed.
Prior to these strikes, the US had conducted extrajudicial operations in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, killing at least 115 individuals it accused of drug trafficking.
After the January 3 attacks, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the US would push the Venezuelan government to allow American companies to invest in the oil sector, combat criminal groups, and cut ties with Iran and Hezbollah. On January 5, President Trump warned reporters that if Venezuela does not “behave,” the US “will do a second strike.”
Trump also declared that the US would “run” Venezuela until a “judicious transition” occurs. However, observers at HRW note that the US government has not clarified what such a transition would involve or when it might happen—whether it would include free elections, the release of political prisoners, or other vital human rights reforms.
Despite repression by Maduro’s government, Venezuelans voted in large numbers in July 2024. Independent analysts reported that the majority supported Edmundo González, backed by opposition leader María Corina Machado, to become president. Nevertheless, electoral authorities declared Maduro the winner of the re-election.
It is widely reported that following the elections, the Maduro regime intensified its human rights abuses, including the killing of protesters, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances of opposition figures, critics, human rights activists, and foreign nationals.
HRW says that currently, more than 860 political prisoners are incarcerated in Venezuela, as per Foro Penal, a legal aid organization, with the International Criminal Court’s Prosecutor’s Office investigating alleged crimes against humanity committed since 2014.
For over ten years, Venezuela has been mired in a humanitarian crisis marked by critical shortages of food and medicine, outlined the watchdog organization. The report also approximates that seven million Venezuelans have fled the country, and 14.2 million others face urgent humanitarian needs.
Human Rights Watch emphasized that Latin American, European, Canadian, and other global leaders should advocate for a democratic transition, demand the release of political prisoners, and hold accountable those responsible for egregious human rights violations committed by the Venezuelan government. The group specifies that the US should also honor its international legal obligations under human rights and humanitarian law.
“Foreign governments should focus on protecting the rights of Venezuelans who have suffered for a decade at the hands of the Maduro government,” Goebertus urged. “Trump’s decapitation of the Venezuelan government has done nothing to protect them from further abuse.”
Just another useless organization making proclamations while the people of Venezuela continue to suffer. That’s what’s been going on for years until Trump finally did something concrete. That’s why pretty much every venezuelan who is not linked to the government or under the threat of violence or having their phones searched is celebrating Maduro’s capture.
The only people who are upset are people living comfortably away from the conditions of Chavez/Maduro’s regime. People who’ve never had to stand in lines for food and basic groceries, who’ve never had to see their families members or even themselves kicked out of work for not supporting the government, people who’ve never had to flee for their lives to escape repression etc
And to any of those idiots who want to talk about sanctions tell me how was an economic collapse that started since 2010, caused by sanctions that were imposed in 2017. Cite the specific sanctions and their corresponding effects
Venezuela and CARICOM:
Eventually, the US and the rest of the Americas will have no choice but to create the greatest economic Union (or country) on earth, including Greenland, Mexico, Central and South America, and yes, including Venezuela, and the Caribbean.
Otherwise, the autocratic regimes of the world will continue to try to infiltrate our Western Hemisphere.
It seems to me that CARICOM has a decision to make. Whom would CARICOM electorates prefer to have in their backyard?
Robust public debate is necessary on this important issue.