On September 1, 2016, Venezuelan protesters filled the streets of Caracas, calling upon the government to hold a recall election that would likely oust President Maduro. Dozens of demonstrators, including the journalist Braulio Jatar Alonso who publicized information about the protests, were arrested, further adding to Venezuela’s growing list of political prisoners. However, the opposition’s…
On June 19, 2016, Francisco Pancho Marquez Lara and Gabriel San Miguel, two Venezuelan activists, were arrested during a traffic stop by the Venezuelan National Guard on charges of having “opposition paraphernalia” in their car. Both are members of Venezuela’s opposition party, Voluntad Popular, and were traveling to the rural state of Portuguesa…
Civil society organizations including the Latin American and Caribbean Network for Democracy (REDLAD), Latin America Youth Network for Democracy (Juventud LAC), Freedom House, and Participacion de la Sociedad Civil en la Cumbra de las Americas (PASCA) attended the Organization of American States (OAS) General Assembly this week in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Ahead of the…
Freedom House has published its latest report on the state of global freedom titled “Anxious Dictators, Wavering Democracies.” The report reveals the continuing world-wide slide of political rights and civil liberties, as authoritarian leaders continue to crack down on civil society and dissent. Over the last decade, the most significant global reversals have been in…